DJ survived his first day at the new job. The rest of us managed to muddle through without him at home. It helped that we had company all day. We babysat for a 3 year old girl in the morning. She left and a half an hour later cousin Kathleen came over for the afternoon, so Joey could have his physical therapy session in peace. Sami was in heaven entertaining the girls. She is a great hostess, showing off her room, toys and teaching everyone how to jump on her brother's bed.

DJ's day was spent in orientation, learning the company policies, what he would be doing, getting all sorts of fun electronic toys and the endless paperwork. He was well compensated with a steak lunch. Later this week he will be going with another consultant to clients and get real hands on experience.

School ended about 2 1/2 weeks ago. We are trying to keep up with reading. If Sami keeps going she will be doing 1st grade reading next year and the rest of her curriculum will be kindergarten. She is a strong visual learning and has always been ahead of her age in language development. The two skills make her a natural reader. Chris took longer to catch on to reading. About a month ago he went to bed one night, stuggling to understand the concept of reading and woke up the next day, a reading machine. Sami has little interest in math, while Chris has been able to do multiplication in his head for almost a year now.

We've been keeping busy since school ended. We've been to Brookfield zoo a few times and hope to get back soon for their new ray exhbit. We've gone to the Morton Arboreteum quite a bit. Chris, though is really liking Cantigny. He is tall enough now to climb the tanks without any help. Good for him, bad for mom, because dear Sami is very determined to get herself up with him. She doesn't like getting help. Plus when she decides to get down, she slides on off with reckless abandon.

Chris is riding his bike without training wheels. Like reading, he went to bed one night barely able to get around the cul de sac with lots of help and the next day he rode to the park only needing help to get started. So now, he can race his sister again. Sami is thrilled to be able to climb the top of the tunnel slide just like her big brother. If we survive this summer without broken bones it will be a miracle.

Sami is looking forward to her first kid birthday party. We are having a Cars theme ( the Disney movie). Ironically, she has never seen the movie. She is enamoured with Cars, ever since we convinced her that it is a girl movie, because the lead car is Lightening McQueen. We did this out of desperation while trying to get her to buy shoes. THe only pair she deemed comfortable had Lightening McQueen on it and she figured they were boy shoes. We told her they were girl shoes because it said Queen. So we are having a Cars birthday party for friends on June 23 and a family party the beginning of August. She agreed that we could celebrate her birthday close to the anniversary of her baptism since she would have a party close to her birthday. Less stress on mom, if they aren't right on top of each other.

Not much else going on here. Take care.

David - our hero!

Forgot to mention - Dave was able to diagnose and FIX our broken radio in the PW. Turns out the antenna got disconnected when we hit a big bump. And we traveled thousands of miles over a 2 week period - in silence.

holiday weekend

We had a nice visit with Dave and Melissa yesterday. They came down from the northland to visit Grandma as well as Pop and I. We broke open the grill for the first time this year and did burgers and hot dogs. Store-bought potato salad, buns and taco dip and chips rounded out the menu. I wasn't into cooking since I've been working too many hours at the Jewel. The primary opener at our store has been out for a week with a kidney stone attack. It sounds like she's having a terrible experience so I shouldn't be complaining.

Pop and I successfully installed the new microwave last week (He did all the hard parts.) Needless to say, even though it was a G.E. and looks a lot like the old one, it needed a totally different bracket setup.

Pop just went out to cut the grass. I feel badly for him because his feet are really sore, but he won't ask one of the boys across the street to do it. His feet are really giving him problems when he's on them at work. Perhaps he should retire - again....

Gram is managing back at Devonshire - with a little help from her friends. She sets out in the wheelchair to go to breakfast and frequently someone comes along and offers to push.

Time to put some clothes in the dryer and pay a few bills. Sadly, the real estate taxes are due June 1.

Did I mention to you that Bob and Mary Ann are going to Italy, along with Mike and Meghan. Their kids all chipped in in honor of their 40th wedding anniversary which won't take plane until October. They're leaving May 31st and returning June 11th, and will be visiting about 10 different cities over there.

Hope to hear from you soon. D.J. - how was your first day on the new job?

Mom

going home...

I just got home from work, and now I'm going to the hospital to get Gram and take her home. What I need now is a rest home for myself :-) Just worked 3 full days straight and I'm ready for a holiday. Hope everyone is enjoying their Memorial Day weekend.

Gram

Update:

Last evening Gram called me because she had swelling and severe pain in her leg along the incision. An ice pack seemed to help, but this morning it was worse so her doctor had her call 911 and go to the hospital. She's still there - they're admitting her, and I'm on my way to her house to get some stuff she needs and then I'm going back up to the hospital. I'll be in touch....

Naperville update

It's been awhile, so here goes....

Last week Pop and I went shopping for a new patio set. We bought one from Sears, but didn't want to pay $60 for delivery, so today we rented a van from Home Depot ($19 for the first 75 minutes, plus a couple of gallons of gas.) Brought it home, Pop got it assembled, and now it's out there. You are all welcome to come and visit it.

We also ordered a new microwave from Grant's. That's due in on Wednesday, so Pop should have a blast installing it. Last night we took out the old one, so in a perfect world the new one will fit the existing bracket and life will be good. Time will tell.

Lastly, we still need a new dishwasher, but that's on hold for a little while. Now you all are starting to realize that we are spending your inheritance.

Vacation was great, but coming back isn't. We're mostly caught up with the mail and stuff. I'm still determined to get the @#$%& off the kitchen table. In a perfect world I would have a place for everything and it would all get put away.

The veggie garden is planted, as are all the flowers in the pots and stuff. If it doesn't rain soon, we'll have to water it all. A pair of ducks has been hanging out here for a week or so. They come and go, but we suspect they will be laying eggs one of these days. I'm somewhat nervous about this because the last time this happened, something, probably a raccoon, ravaged the nest and the eggs.

Are Chris and Sami finished with school? How are you spending your days now, Michele?

Happy anniversary on Thursday to Melissa and Dave!

Yesterday I called Rob. They're moving to a new (for them) house on June 15th. It's in Blaine, which I believe is just east of Coon Rapids. Cecilia turned 2 on the 12th of this month, and they're excited that she will have a fenced in yard to run around in. Turns out that Lisa is expecting their baby about Nov. 18th. It's going to be neck and neck, Julie!

I know there was more stuff that I should cover, and I'll try to post more frequently. Meanwhile, I send my love to you all.

Mom

Little Wonders Never Cease

Looky what I got in my belly! Baby Chard is a little over 12 weeks old and is due toward the end of November. Life as we know it will end immediately thereafter... and we will begin our most spectacular adventure yet.

Lots of love to the Wood family,
Julie (and Brandon - he was involved in this too, you know)

Progress Update - the journey home

I talked to Mom last night and she said that they made it all the way across Wyoming. It would be a long hard push for them to get home tonight, so they decided to just play it by ear and see how they feel today. They may or may not make it all the way home tonight. Mom's cell number is 435-770-7150 if you want to check in with them some time today. SUNDAY NIGHT UPDATE: They're staying the night in Iowa, east of Des Moines, about 4 hours from home. They'll be home by early tomorrow afternoon.

They've flown the coop

Hello family! Mom and Pop hit the road for home this morning. Their Wednesday through Sunday visit turned into a Tuesday through Saturday visit and they are anxious to get home and see Gram. We were sad to see them go but bolstered by the knowledge that we'll be seeing them again at the end of June. The weather here turned miserable on Thursday and is still yucky. We actually had some snow flurries in the valley late this morning. Pray that Mom and Pop will have clear roads and a safe journey home. They expect to be home by tomorrow night. DJ - thanks for calling with the update on Gram. We're so relieved that she's feeling better and I know she'll be glad not only to be going home but to have Mom back in town.

greetings from Hyrum - from Mom

I can't seem to remember how to sign myself on to send a blog, but Julie has kindly allowed me to use her space.

Pop and I are on the last leg of our journey. We crossed Colorado and northern Arizona to Boulder City, NV, and stayed overnight with our friends Dennis and Teddy Law. Out through Death Valley and northward along the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada to Lake Tahoe and Truckee CA where we spent a couple of days with George Gabel and Linda. Then to Reno for the bowling. The fellas didn't fare too well, but they had fun(?). Pop's friend Nancy and her husband Larry, who live in Roseville, CA met us in Reno on our last afternoon there and we had a nice visit. We drove across Nevada and arrived here on Tuesday evening. Yesterday we had 4 new tires put on the PW in Logan and Pop repaired a cracked pipe that led from our grey water tank. Today our windshield is being replaced at a glass shop in Hyrum. The weather has turned cold and rainy today, so we are prisoners at the Chard house. We're having a nice visit with Julie and Brandon, but they're both at work right now.

I can't help wondering about how Gram is doing. I guess that to see her I'll go to the Westbury when we get home, probably Monday but possibly Sunday night. I don't know how to call her. Has anyone been to see her?