Why my kids laugh in church

Church Bulletin Bloopers

If you choose to heave during the Postlude, please do so quietly.

We are grateful for the help of those who cleaned up the grounds around the church building and the rector.

Newsletters are not being sent to absentees because of their weight.

Helpers are needed! Please sign up on the information sheep.

Diana and Don request your presents at their wedding.

Lent is that period for preparing for Holy Weed and Easter.

I bet many will be preparing for the holy weed this year.

Thanksgiving with Friend's

This year we did something different. We accepted an invitation from our close friends to have Thanksgiving at their house. Richard is godfather to both their girls and I consider Bill's wife, Heidi, to by one of my best friend's. We met them about 8 years ago when Richard was transferred here to Milwaukee for a company that Bill worked for. Bill was laid off from that company not long after but they've remained close friends. When Bill was laid off last year, Richard got him a job working in his department in the fortune 100 company that Richard works for in downtown Milwaukee.

I feel bad not going out to Michigan to be with my grandma during this first Thanksgiving without grandpa, but it was a nice change. We didn't have to pack, travel, shop, cook, clean and pay hundreds of dollars on gas.



A picture of her heirloom table. Heidi's mother made the curtains! Notice my white russian; a drink I've never had before and enjoyed quite a bit.





Heidi and her cousin put this display up. I love it. Heidi has such a way with decorating. This house was built about a year ago and it's gorgeous.



To the right of the ceiling here is a loft. Originally the floor plans included just a small hallway upstairs to the left of the great room but Bill asked the builders if they could extend the second floor a bit to include a loft. It's a perfect area for their 5 year old to watch her kid shows and play while her parents can still hear and see what's going on.



View from the loft above.




Their 5 year old inherited this 42 in TV when Bill got a new big screen TV. She also has a TV/DVD combo in her bedroom.



I just took a few pictures of their house as my camera stinks lately and the battery will never charge fully. She has the whole house decorated so perfectly. I have to get more pictures sometime. The green furniture was Heidi's when she was a girl. Bill and Heidi fought about this set as Bill hated it and thought it was ugly and Heidi thought it matched the purple walls and carpet nicely. Not to mention she wanted to avoid buying more furniture after spending more money then intended on the house.



The castle headboard came from LTD and matches a fairy bedding set they sell.



Here's the baby's room. I wish I got some more pictures, the whole room has an adorable butterfly theme. I of course love going in to this room. Again, the curtains were made by Heidi's mom. Note the frames on the dresser. She cracks me up with how many frames she has at any given time without pictures. The baby is 14 months and still there are no pictures in those frames. I gotta love a fellow procrastinater. I think it also has something to do with her perfectionism, something else I suffer from. If you can't do it perfect, don't do it at all. Blech. That hang up is exactly why I never get anything done!



Jake loves to play in the baby's ball pitt.



Snoo with a puppet. I have no idea why she was walking around with that thing. I just caught her in the act and threatened to send her to puppeteer school if she broke anything. (something she does quite often.)



J and Richard watching the game on the big TV.



Here's the star of Thanksgiving. It must really suck to have your crotch and insides stuffed with celery but I will be lying if I said the diners felt any guilt or remorse. They made two turkey's in a roaster and they came out very tender. She also made a ham.




Bill handling his meat. Those are HIS words, not mine.



Heidi is making some killer gravy. I personally don't like gravy, but everyone else said it was divine.



The dessert table. Is there really anything else more important? Fudgy chocolate pie, pumpkin pie, apple-cranberry pie, apple pie, fairy food, and cheesecake. If there wasn't good enough there was dessert wine and hot apple cider. The best part of all? I didn't have to cook any of it. Oh yeah.



You HAVE to click on these pictures for a larger view. Furry babies are a little piece of heaven.




Their Boston Terrier, Nika, gave birth to six puppies about two weeks ago. It was hard to leave them alone.



You know you want to hold him. You know you want one.



Please can I have one? Please can I take some home with me?

I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving. We all had a great time and it was so relaxing this year. Well, for me at least, but maybe not for Heidi. Although, I think the two or three white russians helped out.

Child Labor is Underrated

Sorry about the quality of pictures. My camera is dying and decides to choke at its own will. Santa is bringing me a digital slr... I can dream, can't I? Here's a boy who knows how to vacuum. Mama is proud, mama is very proud.

I'm back

I'm alive. I've been feeling better and stronger every day now for about a week. I've been taking it easy and getting back to normal, little by little. I miss my journaling though. I miss my friends and readers. I miss reading my blogroll. I just didn't have it in me.

I kept getting hit with some nasty bug or virus, one after another. This whole house has been a danger zone. I'll get caught up, but for now I leave you with this.

Life without thankfulness is devoid of love and passion. Hope without thankfulness is lacking in fine perception. Faith without thankfulness lacks strength and fortitude. Every virtue divorced from thankfulness is maimed and limps along the spiritual road.~ John Henry Jowett

After the last few weeks, more then normal, I am thankful in all things.