Heading back to LR

 
We are supposed to get with Robby and Rachel and have breakfast. Maybe also her parents as they are down for the Cardinal vs Royal's game last night.
We plan on heading out for LR after breakfast. We are supposed to go to a banquet with Lee and Angela at 6:00pm at their church this evening. They have meet their building fund goal and should soon have the new auditorium finished and completely paid for.
Guess I better get around and get Steve packed so he will have something to wear. 

Took Steve to work

 
Got up and took Steve to work. I then went looking for some things I wanted for the house. Didn't do too well, my knee is really giving me fits, causeing my leg to hurt and then my ankle swells and hurts so bad. Guess my shot has worn off. Means another trip to the doctor.
Picked up Steve and we came home and fixed lunch, then just chilled. Steve had ask his boss if he could work remotely from LR this coming week and be down for Memorial Day weekend. He received an email from his boss saying he could. Robby and Rachel are coming down for the holiday, it will be so wonderfuld to have the whole family together again.
We got around and ready and headed to Brian and Carlin's for birthday cookout for them. It was so good. Carlin is a wonderful cook and Jim and Terri were there also. We enjoy being with them all very much. 

Up eartly for oil change and KC

 
Got up and picked up the house and headed for North Point to get oil change and tires rotated, before leaving for KC. Was on the road by about 10:30am. Traffic not too back and made good time. Got to KC around 4:45. Was glad to see Steve. we hoped to get with Robby and Rachel, but by the time we got in touch with them they were alread with friends for the evening. We will see them Sat morning for breakfast before I leave to go back to LR. We went to Applebees for a quick supper and back home to relax. 

Got locks and athings for outbuldings

 
Run in to town to pick up some things Lee needed to put locks on the outbuildings. He still is not feeing well. He went home after I picked up the boys from the school bus. Angela came by to pick them up and stay to visit awhile before taking them to Awana's and go to church. Nice visit.
After they were on their way Scott called and ask if I wanted to meet them at a new Mexican Restaurant they had found. I had not eat yet, so off I went. It was very good. We made a quick stop at Walmart and then they were off to pick up Branley and Ashley from Awana's. I headed home. Got settled in and off to bed shortly thereafter. 

Up and at um

 
Not really. I got to looking at old albums and old scrapbook. My mother-in-law was very good at this and labeled things and included stories. It was so great and I am about halfway through. Decided I might as well finish up, so I can put them up and get to work. Preston and Drew came over after school Lee was also there. He just does not feel very good, so he looked through the books with me. Boys had snacks, did homework then out to get their bikes and take off. It is good to see them enjoy being at the house.
Fixed supper for them, haven't done that for awhile. 

Robby's first day at Sprint

 
Big day for my baby boy. Hope all goes well. Rachel is loving her new job. So good to see things go well for your kids.
Talked with Steve, and he plans on going after a cache after work. I am going to start in the house going through things. 

Mother's Day

 
Got up and got ready to church with Lee and family. Thought we were to meet at 9:45. Lee called at 8:10 and said we were to go to the early morning service at 8:30. Finised dressing and headed out. About 5 minutes late. We got out around 11:45. Angela and Lee were going to her Mom's for lunch. I called Scott and asked if too late to catch them at their service and he told me they had just started singing, so away I went. Made it while the singing service was still going. We then went to their house along with her Mom and Dad and had a wonderful Roast Beef lunch.

I went by Angela's mom's house and picked up Lee and we went to the evening service, then went back to their house and had dinner. Very enjoyable day with the family. Headed home about 8:45 and was in bed by 9:00 with a good book and soon after fast asleep. 

Gong to meet Scott, Laura and Kids

 
We are up early to get packed and take off to meet Scott and gang in Bentonville. No matter how much I plan I manage to forget something. I had a trash bag full of bedding and other things with my stuff to pack in car. Steve thought it was trash, so in the trash it went. Halfway to Ar. I thought I didn't see it in the back and asked about it. That is when I learned where it was. Sooo needless to stay I told Steve he had to retrieve it and I would take it down the next trip or he could bring it when he comes.

Meet the Kids, visited a minute and then we all hit the road. It was 11:00 and Steve had to get back, pack his orienteering things, pick up chichen and be at park by 4:00 pm. He made it, we made it and I settled in our house. 

About to get it together

 
Still ave much too do, but at least I can see and end. Am looking forward to being with the grandkids and helping out their busy parents when I can. Stephen wants me to come back next Fri. Not sure what I will do. This is Robby's last day with Nation's and he is really looking forward to working at Sprint. We had supper with them last night and they are so sweet together. Their is nothing like seeing a couple in love, engaged and planning the future. Really enjoyed our time with them. 

Busy

 
Stephen has and Orieteering event and picnic on Sat. Talked to Scott and Laura and they are going to meet us in Bentonville (halfway) and take me to with them on Sat morning. Still ave a lot to get together. 

 

Boy, I love this time of the year, but my sinus doesn't. Anyway, didn't do much today except stick around the house After much thought we decided I should go on down to the house in LR for awhile. Scott, Laura and kids are going to meet us halfway. Stephen is helping out an orienteering event laster Sat. afternoon, so he will have to get back to KC. I will be coming back for things going on as the summer progresses. This will give me a chance to help out the the grandkids and their activities as moms and dads try to work and keep up.

It is a beautiful cool evening and tomorrow will be cool also. Will I guess it is time to retire for the night. Night all. 

Decided to go to Little Rock

 
We have decided I should go to Little Rock to take care of some things and start going through the house and getting it set up. Got to finish laundry, get hair cut, get Stephne stocked up and etc. Much to do. 

Not much happening

 
Not a whole lot on the agenda today. Picked up Stephen's spoons for his lunch at work this morning on my way home from taking him to work. Fiddled around the house all day, then picked up Stephen.
I fixed meat loaf for supper. Added a can of rotel to it for a little extra kick. Turned out pretty good. Talked to Lee, he wasn't feeling too good. Then talked to Scott and he told me Laura's friend from work passed away this morning. She found out in late Dec. she had leukemia. She is around 30 yrs old. Had a baby last year, which she has been away from since Dec., as she was in hospital. It is so sad to see such a young family go through this, can't imagine the pain the family is in. Laura and fellow employees had taken up money to get food for the evening. Laura was to pick it up and take to the family, I know this had to be hard for her.
We were sitting around watching tv, computing and it hit Stephen he had an orienteering event this weekend, so I guess it will be next weekend when we go down to Little Rock.
Well, I guess we will head off to bed. 

A Cloudy Monday

Took Stephen to work at 6:20 AM, then went to IHOP and had breakfast. Was nice and quiet and I enjoyed reading my book as I ate and drank my coffee. I then went to the house and picked up as the exterminater was suppose to come today. I then went to Catherine's to find a dress, I had a $20 coupon and needed a dress to take this weekend to Little Rock, AR. I am going to stay for a couple or three weeks to go through the house and start cleaning out drawers and closets. Stephen will come back and pick me up or we will meet halfway. I didn't find a dress but did get a couple of casual outfits. I then got a bite to eat and then went to Walmart to pick up a couple of things to take to the grandkids. Stopped by and got my hair cut, it had gotten so long and thick, it was like a blanket on my head. Then went to Burlinton's and found the dress I was exactly looking for.

By this time I needed to be on my way to pick up Stephen. Called him and he was back at his building after a meeting with his boss at another building. I headed that direction. Boy was traffic bad, and there is so much construction on the freeway, you just never know when lanes will be blocked and delayed for awhile. Was bad, but did make it to Sprint with 5 minutes to spare.

Andy and Chris came out with Stephen to say hi. Was good to see them. Chris showed me a picture of his grandbaby and she is a doll. Andy's youngin's are in to baseball and are apparently enjoyed playing with daddy very much. Enjoy them while you can, time just flies, and they grow so very quickly.

Stopped by Price Chopper and got salad for supper. Enjoyed it and now just resting. My left knee really is giving me fits as I was on it so much today. Enjoying my easy chair.

A Calm Sunday

We were pretty well laid back today. We decided to go have breakfast on the Plaza. We ate at the Classic Cup Cafe. It was very good. I wanted to eat there in case I decided to have our meeting in June with the group planning the Grave Hop. We went and got a cache on the way home. Spent the afternoon resting at home. Robby and Rachel called and asked if we wanted to go eat. We went to the Jerusalem Cafe in Westport. We truly enjoyed dinner with them. She took her ring back to Kay's to have it resized. Hope to get it back by next weekend. We then returned home and fiddled around the house till time to go to bed. Was a very nice day.

A Quiet Saturday

Today we stayed at home all day. We slept a little late, then enjoyed coffee and just relaxed checking on emails and etc. We had lunch at home and watched a couple of movies then had a couple of steaks for supper. Was really nice to have no commitments. Was a cloudy, dreary day.

A wonderful day for Robby

 
 
Today was a landmark day for us and Robby. As all of you know he is our baby (2/13/80) We went with him to pick up the engagement ring he wanted to give to Rachel Hope Vireck. We have come to love her as a daughter and are very happy about their upcoming marriage next summer. They are so sweet together and are very happy together.

The day started out slowly with Stephen working at home today. I have to be quiet when he is working as he is on the phone and etc. I worked on my blog for the 1st time in a long time. Will try to keep it up. We ate lunch and then Robby called and we went and picked up the ring. He was very calm and cool. He had to go take a drug test for his new job at Sprint and on his way home we had him stop by and took pictures of him and the ring. He said he had butterflies. He wants to propose at Westport Starbuck. That is where they had their 1st date. He called around 6:00pm and said Rachel said yes. We could hear her happy little voice in the background, it is so refreshing and wonderful to see young love and a new beginning of a family.

We ate a couple of the wonderful steaks we got from Russ and there is no comparing the taste of these steaks. We have really enjoyed them. 

I'm Baaaaack

 
 
After many gentle hints to get back to my blog, I finally have made it. The months since I wrote last have had many, many adventures, most of which Steve has written about in his blog. I just hated for you to hear it twice, but he says I say things differently and now you will have two views of our many adventures.

This week has been an unusual week, in that we have not eaten at home since some time last week. We went to Arkansas last weekend to work on the fence at our new home and the weatherman was actually right on the forecast and it rained and rained and rained. We did get the pasture bush hogged thanks to Lee and his keeping on. He has been down most of the week, not all due to bush hogging, but he is on a new medicine and it has really taken a lot out of him. Hopefully he will go to the doctor tomorrow and see if there is something else that will help with the pain that just seems to get worse for him. We are so thankful he keeps on trying.

It started raining Fri. afternoon and continued till Sunday. Friday night we had our first family meal at our house. We had Popeye’s chicken, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, slaw and biscuits with honey. It was so very good, after a hard day. It was wonderful to finally have everyone together in our home. The grandkids all spent the night with us. We bought a pad to put on the bed we sleep on and it really did help, also a fan to drown out the wonderful noises of the county that we are unaccustomed to.

We fixed the kids breakfast and started inside the house doing some things that was needed. I went and picked up Lee, he was so worn out he rode home with Angela instead of taking his truck and trailer home Friday night. He did not feel well, but started on the new door knobs for the house. Installed the one on the back door and started on the front door. It was so close to the glass, Lee was afraid he would break it cutting the hole out to fit, so decided to wait on it. He felt so back, he asked me to take him home and he would rest awhile and come back, hopefully feeling much better.

Scott and Stephen started in on the garage door opener. That took a while. His Dad had used an extension cord to run the old one and Stephen didn’t want to use that. He wanted to install a new outlet, of which he had no supplied to do it with. Laura and I took off to Avilla to pick up what he needed. There were several places we went through on the road there, that we weren’t sure we could make it, due to the water on the road from the rainfall. Made it back safe and sound with what he need, except the wire and it was so expensive, we used a piece he found at the house. We will have to buy a roll soon, because there are not enough outlets in the house.

I did not get one picture of the grandkids playing all day Saturday. I could kick myself. They had a ball, got soaking wet, going to the barn to ride bicycles, sneaking out to ride in the rain and any other opportunity they could find to get wet.

The barn is really a perfect place for them to ride bicycles and their skateboards. They found a mattress and jumped from the stanchions to it and anything else they could dream up. Good to see them using their imaginations instead of watching TV and playing games. Although, Stephen went out to check on them and there was all 4 of them standing in front of an old TV that had been put in the feed house, in a puddle of water (they plugged it in standing in the same puddle). Needless to say Papa came unglued and I don’t think they will try that again. They were watching a ball game. (Stephen said the picture was so snowy you could barely make it out.) Nothing like youngsters to get the blood flowing.

We went to Mimi’s (just opened the 1st one built in Little Rock that day) for supper. We enjoyed being with everyone again. Preston and Drew had to go home, but Ashley and Bradley spent the night with us again. We got up, picked up and then went to meet with Scott and Laura at IHOP to eat breakfast and get the kids back to them before leaving town. Had to wait about 45 min. before we could get seated, then enjoyed breakfast. While there we remembered Lee had the trailer on his truck, with the tractor and he needed to have his lift for his scooter on his truck. We went back out to the country and did that for him, while he was still trying to rest. Now he was ready to go again.

We made it back to KC in 5 ½ hrs. We stopped only once to get gas and kept on trucking, got home at 7:10, picked up Chinese and went home to eat it. We got to bed at a decent hour thank goodness.

Monday Stephen went to work, and then we went to get 3 caches that came out. Brian and Carlin had already found the one not far from their house so we picked it up on the way to Brian and Carlin’s We rode with them to get the last two and then went to eat BBQ with them.

Tuesday took the van to the Kia dealership; our front brakes were acting up and seemed to be out of round. They checked them and they were and replaced them, and also got an oil change. Didn’t take too long, they are very nice and try to get you in and out pretty swiftly. We went to eat with Brian and Carlin and a father and son team who finished the Missouri Delorme challenge. We really enjoyed visiting with them and getting acquainted with new friends.

Wednesday Carlin called and asked if we would like to meet with our Grave Hop team and go over what was going on with each of our quests for hops. We went to Cheeseburgers in Paradise over by the new race track. Was a neat place and we really enjoyed the food and fellowship with our fellow cachers. Seems everyone is getting close to finishing and we will soon start putting the books together and all the other things, such as food for the supper, decorations and etc. Have truly enjoyed going to all the old cemeteries and the research on people and learning much new history on little known and well known pioneers.

Thursday was a quiet day for me and then we went to meet Robby and Rachel at Applebee’s for supper. They are so cute together and so very happy. Rachel’s last day at Target is today and she starts her new job Monday. She is really looking forward to it. She will be working with people with Down’s and so on. Rob has one more week with Nation’s mortgage and he starts with Sprint on the 15th. He is so excited and can hardly wait. We are so very proud of all of our sons. Lee was doing so wonderful with his teaching and writing instruction manuals and etc. before his back went out on him. He was so happy with his work and advancing with his career. We are still as proud of him as he strives to keep his life as normal as he can with his disability. Keep it up, Lee. Scott has done so well with his job in air and heating. We see how hard you work, and how well you have done and it makes us so proud of you. You are trying hard at home to help Laura as she tries to get her degree. Keep up the good work, son. And as we said before Rob we are so proud of you. You keep on with what you’ve started, give it your all. We are so blessed with our 3 sons and could not be any prouder of them. We love them so much and also their mates and those wonderful grandchildren are the best.