Busy as usual

Glad to hear everyone so far had a good Christmas. Rocky and I really enjoyed our time down in Memphis and was sad to see it come to an end. It was a lot of fun to spend time with everyone down south, however Rocky and I cut our trip a little short and came home Sunday afternoon instead of Monday morning. (Rocky and I are also lucky to have had our last day of work be the 23rd, Rocky was home by 11 am that morning and I was off at 2:30 so we didn't have a late trip and don't have to be back until the 5th) So...Rocky and I have been working diligently on some of our remodeling projects. I'll try and remember to take some pictures, it's hard tracking down a camera these days, I left mine in Taylorville on the 14th and so am without it until they deliver it to me on Saturday. The big projects for this week are the laundry room, kitchen, and FINALLY the downstairs bathroom. It's only Tuesday and I think you can already see a huge improvement. It's like a different house, out with the old lady antiques and lace and in with the much newer and shinier! Well it's getting very late (midnight) and I've got to get up early in the morning for my umpteenth trip to Lowes and Wal-Mart for this week and then back to work!!
See most all of you this weekend....

Since I can't sleep anyway...

Woke up (I mean WOKE UP) after dreaming I forgot to order lunch for after a golf tournament and had 60 hungry men at the country club and one hour. In retrospect, guessing I could pull that off. Ah well. Luckily, I too, have a Christmas break so can sleep in.

Santa was good to us too. The kids got their much wished for Wii and a few other wonderful things. Eric's family made it here over the weekend between the snow and ice. The Wii got a workout as the men broke a sweat, developed sore muscles and battled it out- often with Brady kicking their booties.

Brady & I made a quick trip to Quincy to drop off Kenzie for a much anticipated week with Grandpa & Grandma. This is is her first visit "on her own" and she couldn't wait to spend time with them. She is all unpacked & settled into her new room in the back bedroom. She's asked Grandpa if they can make a fruit cake. You'll all have to at least TRY it.

We have several nights of company as Michelle & her family come for dinner tonight and some Carpet One folks join us for New Years Eve. My sisters would be proud at the amount of cooking going on in my kitchen. I am ever so thankful not to be cooking this weekend too!

Happy New Year to each of you and a blessed 2009!

Change Of Plans

Merry Belated Christmas to all and a wish for a wonderful 2009. I too have been busy leading up to Christmas this year and since I hadn't had a chance to post pre-Christmas plans here's what I'm up to in between the 2 holidays. Since I have a wonderful boss who let me off of work for almost 2 full weeks (even though I have to keep my cell with me in case of emergency), I'm spending time with the fam here in Q-town. Christmas was quiet, but very nice. Santa was very good to us this year. It was very interesting to watch Skye opening her presents. I've never seen a dog open it's own presents. Kinda reminds me of a 2 year old! I had planned to spend Saturday afternoon at Bryan & Nikki's catching up with them, but instead spent a lovely rainy drive to Hannibal to pick up Mom & Dad with Bry & Nikki. Wow, was that crazy! Like Nikki said everything was ok and I didn't freak out too badly. Glad Bryan was not working and got the call first. After assuring Grandma that her daughter had all 10 fingers and toes, Mom and Dad spent the evening playing Wii Music (and loving every minute of it). I went to a QHS alumni variety show saluting 2 of my favorite teachers in highschool. I throughly enjoyed it although my friend Steph did not. Got to catch up with some old friends that I have not seen in a long time. Today after my eye doctor apt, we are heading to Mt Pulaski to visit the adopted "Grandchildren", thus the title change of plans. Mom realized that visiting Kathy just didn't fit into the puzzle and it would work best if we visted Gracie and Hope this afternoon. Tomorrow, the Bremmer's arrive, which should be fun. I haven't really seen them much since I went away to college. My plans for the rest of the week is to just relax and spend time with the fam! Looking forward to seeing those that are coming this weekend! To the Midget clan in UT, miss you and thoughts are with you. Hannah, keep me posted if/when you hear from Danyela @ the zoo, I won't be at the zoo for 3 weeks, but will let you know if I hear anything!

Awww Sherry didn't make it...

I was catching up on the blog... sorry so busy around here... but being the good daughter-in-law that I am, I am going to post for Sherry WHY she did not make it to Fairview as she had stated in the last post......

http://www.wgem.com/ - upper right hand side is video w/ Dale being interviewed... atleast at the moment it is. Tee Hee

They got caught in a tornado while driving down on Hwy 61. We went and picked them up, cuz we wanted to see the damage too! You can see that it was part of the roof that hit the car. There's a shingle in the corner and insulation on the grille.

And Christmas Begins

Christmas has officially arrived in Quincy and will stick around for the next week or so as we celebrate with friends and family. Laurie arrived Tuesday evening...the weathermen were wrong about the forecast, her boss said, "Go now, Laurie," and Dad said, "Yes, now while you can..." so a quick trip home to load the car and get Sassy and off she drove. She had only a few bad spots on the drive and not nearly as bad as what her brother got caught in driving his load home from St. Louis. The ice moved farther south and he hit it around Bowling Green. The truck in front of him jackknifed, he was going slow enough he had time to stop...called and told his dad it was so icy he had pulled off and didn't know when or if he would get home that night. He was just about to check in and get a room at the local motel when another trucker gave him the word that the road was now passable, but slow. He was really tired when he got home, though!!

Nikki and Bryan are officially in their home! We made the move on a very cold Saturday. I'll let Nikki fill you in on the details.

Dad fixed a terrific Christmas dinner for my family. Menu consisted of a New York Strip roast, mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green beans, applesauce, and French Silk pie....yum!!!! We ate rather late. Mom really wanted to go to church Christmas morning, so Dad, Dale and I went with her and rather than rush home and cook, we decided to eat in the middle of the afternoon. Then my family played with Bryan's new monopoly set....the credit card version...while Mom and Dad watch TV, etc. A quiet but nice evening. Santa was certainly nice this year and gave us a very wonderful Christmas!!!

Tomorrow, Dale and I will drive to Fairview Heights to visit with Kathy Johnson (a dear friend of ours). She's here spending Christmas with her Mom, brother and sons and daughter along with Matt and Michael's families. Christmas is tough on her...Rachel's death is still very much with her, especially since Rachel's last Christmas was the only Christmas that Kathy did not come home for (she and Charlie and Rebekah live in North Dakota). She had planned on an early spring visit with her instead.

Sunday we're hoping to spend a few hours with my former principal and his wife. They're here in Quincy visiting their daughter. Their son, Nathan, is a Sem student who will be preaching at St. James on Sunday. It'll be the first time that we'll all get a chance to hear him.

Monday evening our goddaughters, Sarah and Rachel Bremer will be arriving with their Mom and Dad and brothers for a couple of days. We haven't seen the girls in over a year and are certainly looking forward to their visit!!

Thursday or Friday will find us in Mount Pulaski visiting our "granddaughters", Gracie and Hope. We'll have Christmas with them then.

The Midget family begins arriving on Friday evening and our big Christmas celebration will begin Saturday afternoon. The grandchildren are following the newest tradition and are cooking supper for their grandparents, moms, dads, aunts, and uncles. (We seniors are looking forward to this!!!) We'll gather afterwards to open gifts!! (We usually open gifts at Mom and Dad's and have dinner at my house, but will have to see about the dinner location ...it will depend on the weather as to where we'll eat).

The family heads home on Sunday and everyone returns to work on Monday. Our schedule is full, but I am looking forward to it. Hope everyone had a very nice Christmas. We wish we could have been with you. Miles, rivers, and mountains may separate us physically, but you're all in our thoughts and prayers each day.

Love to you all.

Oh and by the way.....yes, we did finally get the tree up...Christmas Eve just like I thought, we even had time to hang up a wreath!!!!

Christmas Wishes

Hope each of you received your Christmas wish granted today! We had a great day here-it was a hectic week, thus my tardy response to our preholiday plans. David was released on Tuesday, just in time to go with me to the Trans Siberean Orchestra concert that he had given me tickets to for my birthday. WOW-what an awesome show!! I would recommend it to anyone-I have never seen such a spectacular concert.
I had been opening every day since last week which meant being at work by 3:45 am-then running and finishing up baking, shopping, wrapping, etc in the evenings. It was nice to be off both Christmas Eve (my first time off since I started retail I think!) and then also today. All of the kids were here along with David's sister Nancy and her daughter Megan. We had a great day eating, playing games and eating some more!
The big news was that Chris and Sara had their sonogram and found out that they are having a boy!! All is well-looks like he may be pretty good size at this point-Sara is telling him to slow down a little!!
Thank you to everyone for your prayers and phone calls this past few weeks. I know it is not always easy to understand, but your support and love mean everything to me! My family is the biggest blessing that I have!!
Here is to a wonderful 2009!!
Love each of you!!

Uh, I'm still at work

Well, it's 11 on Christmas Eve, I am at work, but only for another half hour or so. Then I am off to KC. I have eaten a lot this week due to work parties, and I was out too late last night at a gift exchange/night out with the girls. :) I like having three day work weeks. That's about it for now! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

On the eleventh day of Christmas. . .

School is out until January 5th.  Yeah!  I spent yesterday catching up on laundry which tended to pile up over the month.  I mopped my floor, cleaned my bedroom, and convinced my kids to do the same.  (sort of)  I then shoveled my driveway of the newly fallen, very heavy snow.  What a fun way to spend the first day of vacation, I know.  But now I can enjoy the rest right?  

Today we wrapped presents and did our own last minute errands.

We wish everyone the best over the holiday!

Love you all!

We want to know what you're doing!

Hey everyone- If we can't be all together in person, at least we can be virtually! Blog on & tell us what you are doing as you ramp up for the big day. I am at work and looking forward to an afternoon party at my boss' home. Eric & the kids are home and thinking about heading to Carpet One for a potluck. I have my to-do list in my purse but consider being "out" at the last minute part of the fun!

Leslie

Visions of Sugar Plums..

It's Christmas break at the Held's and time for some serious baking for the kids. From a gingerbread house to the world's best Christmas cookies, wish you could all have one! Time for the last of the wrapping and a quick run for some odds & ends tomorrow. Happy day to all!

Love, Leslie

Address

Ours is
8289 Vardon Ln Apt 202
Cordova, TN 38016

We need your too!!

addresses

I need Susan and David's new address in memphis... and Ben and Ashley's address... and Jon and Emilee's

Can you guys, or any1 else please post these so I can get our Christmas Card out to you?

Thanks

How cute is that?!

B, A & T- I LOVE the pictures! Makes me want to kiss those sweet little cheeks :).

Great news- Christine's on Sterling is officially OPEN! WHOOO-HOOOO! There was a press release in the paper on opening day & a Christmas Event in the park across the street on Saturday. Nice timing :). GO TEAM!

Sorry about the pipes N&B. Glad it's fixed.

Love, Leslie

Family Pictures

Having learned the joys (or lack thereof) of photographing babies when we got Ty's portraits done at 6 months, we thought we were prepared for our family photoshoot.

We were wrong.

The morning was freezing cold and Tyler was in such a bad mood I didn't think we'd get anything resembling a smile out of him.

But we couldn't be happier with our family pictures when the photographer posted 'em today.

Take a look at them here.

Christmas Wish Lists

Thought I better throw our's out there for anyone, just so you know these were extremely hard to come up with!!
Rocky-
Gift Cards *they don't have to be for a lot, he says every $5 helps* to--auto zone, JEGS high performance, Summit Racing, Lowe's, Wal-Mart, Game Masters, Farm and Home, and the local Hobby Shop
Clothes-Jeans 36x36 and long sleeve shirts XL-XXL *his shoulders/arms are very broad*
Tools-he just has screwdrivers listed??

Jess-
Cheap fun Jewelry, *sparkly is always good*
Lowe's gift card *even just $17 buys us a new roll of insulation!*
CDs-Jason Aldean and Rihanna
Wal-Mart gift card so I can buy make-up
Smell good stuff for the house
Picture Frame w/a photo included if you have a good one!
a weekend of help on the house (there is always much to be done, you can pick the project of your choice...LOL)
gift cards to McDs, Wendys, or Burger King

Hope everyone is having a good week or at least being grateful that 2008 is almost over!!

Before... & After...

Oh boy.... home ownership is a blast!

First, I would also like to say, Carolyn we are so happy to hear that everything turned out ok.

Now... onto our fun filled Friday!!!!!!!!!!!!

As you all know our home ownership began Monday... Bryan had gone prior to the closing to have the water changed into our name for our new address of 460 Holly Dr. Friday morning.. Dale doesn't have much time to paint today, but still decides to come over to work on the hallway. A drip falls and he goes to wet a papertowel to wipe it up. Low and behold there is no water? Why you ask? Well because the seller called and had it turned off. Hmmm Dale calls the city water and they have no record of Bryan's name. Bryan who tells me what's going on...which I can't d anything about. They find out that the clerk wrote down 406 Holly Dr. Problem solved, right? NO! They come back to turn the water on...there's a small leak that they noice, but being a city worker do they care? No not even in Quincy... after some time they get a call that the street is flooding. They return, turn the water off, and hang a nice pink notice on our door that there is a leak in the water main and we are to call our personal plumber to come fix it.

The story of our Friday begins....

11:00 am - text msg from Bryan "Great we have no water the city shut it off" (now mind you we're not supposed to be text msg'ing at work, but we all do anyways... and I can't leave my desk or anything...Love my job!) ..... find out the story - Bryan figures out that it was an error in house number
11:12 text - they are sending someone to turn it back on, Ok... crisis avoided no big issue there...............................

Friday, 3:00 pm, sitting at my desk at work about to go on break. I get a text msg, "Major problem the water main is leaking badly now they can't turn our water on until its fixed and its our pipe"
* tears....frantic text msg'ing to find out what's going on.....anger.....panic.... anxiety about cost*
3:14 pm "Does the home warraty cover pipes?"
*********** check, yes, but only interior from the water meter into the home
3:30 ** any updates?
3:32 "not yet calling plumber Grandpa suggested"
3:34 " it's stil leaking a little I think its the valve itself, but the city disagrees
******************************************************************************
(pause) So as I'm at work and Bryan is trying to take in the whole situation... the Termite inspector happens to be in the neighborhood and shows up (yes we had the inspection done and the house has to be treated, there's some damage, but no active termites, total cost $900, $750 paid by seller at closing in form of check to inspector) he wanted to try and get the treatment done this weekend, but due to the cold weather won't be able to. All the while Bryan is trying all the plumbers in the phonebook with no luck. It's late on a Friday afternoon and they either don't have any openings until Tuesday or don't even know when the next opening is. *sigh* Well termite inspector saves the day and suggests a plumber he knows, who comes out right away and tells Bryan that he thinks it's a bushing. He's replaced multiple in the neighborhood. The builders that did the subdivision put in steel bushings but the pipes in the houses are copper, and apparently they expand and contract differently, which causes them to break.
********************************************************************************
(play)
4:23 pm "have a plumber coming to look"
4:25 pm "he's the only one even willing to look at it right now"
4:27 pm "this is going to be expensive i'm sure" (I'm thinking to myself, YEA! it's probably going to be thousands. Thank goodness we didn't buy any furniture or a new tv like we had wanted)
4:32 pm "now i'm worried i have the wrong address with the other utilities
4:46 pm "He's going to do it tomorrow morning (thank God) he thinks its a bushing and can do it for around $650
(stop)
*********************************************************************************
So there you have it.... stressful situation taken care of, not going to be in the thousands like we thought.... you'll just all get a Christmas card w/ a torn up front yard showing... and now you'll know why.

Yes I am a dork in my little formatting of my story, but I have to try to stay light hearted about it all. Oh to be a kid again and only have to wonder about what you'll get for Christmas and what to wear to school.... LoL

I will be posting after photos as I take them.... for the remodeling...

Have a great weekend!!!

Let me add to the thoughts and prayers-Carolyn I too am glad all came out so well. It sounds like you had a wonderful doctor who took great care of you! We all hear about using sunscreen, but I think maybe we'll take it a little more seriously now.
David had biopsies done this week also on his stomach and small intestine-the doc said he really thought that the problem was more the medicines just eating away at his stomach but wanted to be sure. Kind of disgusted at the Jonesboro doctor who took him off his Protonix a few years ago-he probably wouldn't be having any troubles now! Being back on them will help-now I know not to let anyone take them away!
Sara, Chris and I are (slowly) recovering from our colds. It was a nasty little bug-seems to last forever! At least I can take a few more meds then poor Sara. I came home Sunday and slept for 18 hours-that always helps too :)
Can't wait to see pics posted of the new shop and the new house. Everyone seems to be busy remodeling, painting, etc-makes me appreciate my little apartment!!
Work is really busy-this is the busiest store I have ever worked in. Every day is a challenge just staying filled and recovered (or at least attempting). On top of the holidays, the store manager quit the week before Thanksgiving.....oh, there is never a dull moment here. Hopefully we will have a new one in place soon-will be the 10th one in 5 years-is there a trend here?? Not really a store I would particularly want at this point.
On the upside, we had a great Thanksgiving with the kids, David's sister Nancy and her daughter Megan and David's niece Lorie and her husband and two kids. We finally visited the famous Beale Street and also checked out Zoo Lights at the Memphis Zoo. Plenty of shopping too! Luckily the weather was warm and we could spread out onto the balcony for space :)
Well-I have rattled on enough-let me close with a HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISH FOR DALE!
Hope you enjoy your day!

Blessings and Paint

I'll echo the sentiments of everyone else and say how glad we are that every thing turned out okay for you, Carolyn. Medicine is certainly a wonderful thing. I, too, never noticed anything so am sure that the scar will not draw attention. Your wonderful smile and sparkling eyes will certainly be the attraction.
As for the paint topic....Dale finished the ceilings of Bryan and Nikki's rooms today and will begin painting the walls tomorrow. He's working alone right now..while Bryan and Nikki take care of the hundred million other things that need to be done....measuring carpet, getting keys made, etc. They are right, though. The house is much bigger than what I remembered, too. Once the furniture was out, the size of the rooms were quite bigger than we had thought!! It will be fun to watch them as they turn it into "their" house!!!
Chris, glad to hear everything went okay. The shop looks great...and I'm sure it will be a success!!! You all did a lot of hard work to bring it about. Can't wait to hear about your Open House on Saturday.
Sue, heard you, Sara, and Chris were down with bad colds. Hope you all are feeling better. Know this is your busy season and your hours are long.
I've had a few days off, too, with a flu bug---am following my own instructions and not returning to work until I'm on my feet for 24 hours--which is tomorrow. Too many of our students and staff return too early and wind up going home AFTER they have spread the germs to the rest of the school.
Hope everyone has a good rest of the week! Love to all.

Blessings

Quick note to say I am so glad you are OK Carolyn.

Also yay for Nikki & Bryan. The home seems to grow as you measure for floor coverings. Don't worry, it'll shrink back when you move all your stuff in.

And hooray for the opening of Christine's on Sterling! I echo our thanks to our family. We couldn't done it w/o you!!!!

Love,
Les

Grandpa & Grandma's Christmas List

Congrats to Bry & Nikki!!! Can't wait to see it. Waiting to here a moving date, but will be available to help do whatever needs to be done while I'm home for the holidays. Carolyn, glad to hear everything is ok!
So on to the Christmas List for Grandpa as he is very concerned that if it's not posted he won't get anything for Christmas... Grandpa would like Argyle Socks, Cheap Whiskey (or really any kind of Whiskey), a sheet of masonite 1/4 inch thick (this doesn't need to be wrapped), Waldenbooks or Kohls Gift Cards. Grandma, who is still thinking of her list had these 2 items, Heated seat cover for the car and hospital socks (the ones that are have no slip strips and no toe seam, the toe seam really bothers her).
Last thing really, I'm asking the Grandkids that are coming to Quincy to once again help with Christmas dinner on Jan 3rd. I will be supplying the main course of Baked Ham. Here's the rest of the menu:
Mash Potatoes & Gravy
Cheesy Corn Casserole
Green Bean Casserole
Soup
Bread
Pumpkin Pie - Nikki has agreed to make thise
Apple Crisp
Cookies - Daddy I'm hoping we'll have some of your awesome Christmas cookies!
Salad w/various dressing
Pineapple Stuff that Grandma makes - Grandma & Mackenzie
Waldorf Salad - Grandpa & Brady

Please let me know if you will be willing to help and what you would like to fix. As to my life right now. Not much new is going on. Work is normal. Zoo is good, new tamarins went on exhibit this week. So this will be my first weekend to be able to work with them. Oh, Hannah I think I will be able to get you a volunteer position if you are interested. You'll need to fill out the form that is located on the blankparkzoo.org website. Let me know if you have any q's. Back to work as I watch the snow swirl around outside. Hope everyone has a great week!

Carolyn, I am so happy to hear that everything is alright with your procedure and you are in the clear. I never noticed anything on your face either. Just your wonderful smile!!!
Our prayers will be with you for a perfect recovery and healing process.
Nikki and Bryan, congratulations on your new home.....I know you are excited to get in and make it yours. I will look forward to the pictures.

Things here in KC have been crazy as a good part of our family can attest to. Everyone worked super hard over the Thanksgiving holiday helping at the Sugar Creek salon. By Sunday evening we were ready for the inspectors to come. That they did yesterday. We passed state board with flying colors and the city inspection with just a couple of minor things that the electrician has to complete. Although the inspector told us not to stop our opening next Tuesday Dec. 9th :-)
We will plan our Grand Opening in Jan or Feb. will let you all know the exact date.
Again our thanks to Sherry, mom and dad for cooking a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner (otherwise it would have been who knows what) Laurie for keeping an eye on Kenzie and Brady so they did not have to hang with us at the salon (they seem to have had their fill of this). Dad for recovering our chair arms (they look great with the mats) Dale for connecting and wiring our phones (plus much more). Julie for dusting, cleaning and whatever else she found that needed to be done. Mom and dad for their moral support and for the upbringing that we had to give us the courage and confidence to venture into another business. And of course our partners in this Leslie and Eric for all the time, effort, hard work, determination,headaches, and support to make this happen.
We are truly blessed as a family! and although I did not get to post what I am thankful for last week, I am taking that opportunity now.
God Bless You All!

Congrats and Whew!

Congratulations to the new home owners. Can't wait to see the before and after pictures. That is my favorite part of remodeling. Well, actually being finished is my favorite part of remodeling, but it is great to be able to see how far you have come. 

As for the whew, I had a large black and brown spot taken off my jawline a few weeks ago. It was melanoma in situ--the bad kind of skin cancer but only in the skin, so considered stage 0. I had to have a follow up procedure with a special kind of surgeon, who can examine the cells after they are removed, to make sure they got it all. They took  pretty good sized chunk yesterday, sent it to the lab, and it came back clean. They got all the bad cells, so today they stitched me up. I am sporting a very attractive pressure bandage and will have a pretty big scar for several months. But as my friend Amy just said, "none of us ever noticed the darn thing before, we aren't going to notice the scar." The surgeon was a combination dermatologist, pathologist, plastic surgeon (called a Mohs surgeon), so he was able to take the minimum amount of tissue and minimize the scar. 

So here's hoping Santa brings each of you a great big bottle of SUNSCREEN for Christmas and that you use it every day. 

Love, Carolyn

Official Home Owners!!!

The papers are signed...the keys are hung...
We're home owners now...
the job certainly is not done...

There's paint to be painted...
Carpet to be installed...
if only that were it...
but we're in it for the long haul...

I'm such a little rhymer... LoL

Anyways.. we closed on our house today. It's much bigger than we remembered, which is a good thing. Bryan and Dale will be working on getting the ceilings painted in the living room and bedrooms tomorrow. We're hopefully going to get all the painting done by the end of this weekend so we can work on getting flooring done ASAP so we can get moved in before Christmas. I'll be posting before and after photos and will be video taping also!!!

Hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving!

Love,

Nikki & Bryan