Red Sock Mama

2012-01-31T01:58:00.002-05:00

I have to tell you...

I have a program on my computer...I used to check it daily, but now I only check it once or twice a year...

If I ask it, it will give me a few stats...

Like this one...

I have been quit for 6 Years, 1 hour and 15 seconds (2,191 days). I have saved $32,865.61 by not smoking 131,462 cigarettes. I have saved 1 Year, 3 Months, 2 Days, 11 hours and 10 minutes of my life. My Quit Date: 1/31/2006 12:55 AM!!!!!

2012-01-24T11:21:00.000-05:00

You gotta see this!

I know, you want to know what happened at the Frigid 5 Miler, but before I show you, you have to see this...

Last spring, while we were at a benefit luncheon, the boys bought my nephew, Tyler, a unicycle. Summer is such a busy time for our family, and the uni was pretty much forgotten until a few weeks ago.

I already told you that Butler is a bicycling town, but have I told you that it is a unicycle town as well?

Yes! Butler has a Unicyle Club, Butler Wobble, who meets on Saturdays at the Y. A great bunch of people and they have lots of fun, so if you are local and interested in learning to balance on one wheel, I encourage you to check out their blog!

Come to think of it, there will be some pretty incredible unicycle activities coming up in May. If you are interested in unicycle and even remotely local, check it out.

Getting back to the story...according to the experts, it takes about ten hours of wall hugging practice before you can take off across the gym on your unicycle. Tyler was determined to beat that number. and worked hard!

By the end of the evening, he was doing very well. In another week or two, I'm sure he'll be pedaling along with Andy and Tony!

Someone else was working just as hard, and doing just as well...

Yes, it's Morgan! She was doing a great job! I know how hard it is, and was very proud of her!

Did I ever tell you how hard it is to get hurt on a unicycle? Apparently, when you are on a bike and fall off, you fall OVER. When you are on a unicycle and lose your banance, you fall forward and pretty much walk off of it. Seems that statistically, you are safer on a uni than on a bicycle...

Unless your name is Tony...

who managed to break his scaphoid bone, which the orthapedic surgeon tells us, is very hard to break...but he's all healed now, which is good since he has to help...

Three torn ligaments...

~sigh~

Aren't they perfect for each other?

So, come back so I can tell you all about the Frigid 5 Miler!

Now I'm getting company today! My friend, Janet, who I have not seen in forever and a week, is coming to visit, so I'm off to get my chores done before she gets here.

Go out and be a blessing in someone's life but don't forget to come back soon!

Thanks for stopping by...

Love,

Jan

Catherine

2012-01-24T07:49:00.000-05:00

Stop the Presses!

Oh no...I believe I just became front runner in the

Bad Mother-in-law competition...

I am a day late posting this...

Happy Birthday, Catherine!

Yesterday was my daughter-in-law, Catherine's birthday. I've been such a scatter brain lately, that I am a day late posting this. I hope that she'll consider the source, forgive me and accept my biggest and brightest birthday wishes for her!

We're blessed to have her in our family...

She's a devoted wife...

A medal winning runner...

First class baker of pies, a champion ping pong player...

She's funny, beautiful and smart. We're proud of her!

Happy birthday, Catherine!

May God bless you with many more!

Love,

Jan

2012-01-20T06:08:00.000-05:00

"Pinging" in the New Year...

Earlier in the holiday season, Andy announced that the New Year Eve party woud be at his house this year...AND...the celebration would include a Ping Pong Tournament! Everyone brought food. I made pork and sauerkraut which must have been pretty good - I saw people eating it all night long!

By time I got there, the compeition was in full swing!

That's my daughter-in-law, Catherine, showing off her skills while Tony eats, Morgan, Brandy and TJ are obviously in awe!?!

Michael looks like he was studying the competition...

Wonder what Jamie was thinking?

There goes Andy...

Andy is such a good doggie dad, he bought Helga Jean a new bed just for the party...

Hey, that's not Helga! Where is Helga?

There she is...guess we know who rules THAT roost,

don't we?

In the mean time, the competition continues. Tony had his brackets all figured out and they posted them on the chalk board...

We had two classes, women and men...

The finalists for the women were Vicky and Heather (Morgan's mom).

Heather won! Vicky didn't jump over the net to congratulate her, but she was a good sport...

Tony presented Heather with her trophy...

Of course we had trophies...we are first class pongers!

Andy and Tony were the finalists for the men. I know, they are always the finalists...

Tony managed to win, but we think it was because he looked so intimidating with his wrist bands...

I presented him with his trophy...

And of course, Vicky had to congratulate him...

He was pretty excited..

The clock struck 12, there was a ton of huggin' and shoutin' going on, even Helga got her ears scratched!

everyone stopped to eat,

but the ping pong went on and on...long after I remembered I was an old woman and went home to get some rest!

~Sigh~

Although I'm not a party person, I always love New Year's Eve. It just feels like a clean slate for me, time to change things, start over, even learn to write a new number when you write checks. It's a good thing, even if it means letting go of old things....

But there are always memories....and those are precious. This New Year, memories are very precious, and some are just darn funny....like New Years, 1964, when we dressed my darling baby brother as the New Year's Baby....

Love ya, bro!

Now it's a snowy Friday, go out and be a blessing to someone and come back soon. I know you are curious about the

Frigid Five Miler....

I'm so glad YOU stopped by to share my life. God bless you!

Love,

Jan

2012-01-17T09:25:00.000-05:00

Santa was here!

This year, Christmas had such a deeper meaning for me, less thought of gift wrap and stocking stuffers, more about the true meaning of Christmas and the gifts that could not be bought: time with family and frieneds. I've already shared our Christmas eve with you and I thought you'd like to see our Christmas morning. Even though Tony, the baby, is 23. it still gets messy and is fun...so imagine you are dressed in your finest pajamas and join us in the living room...

Morgan got to spend the night with us on Christmas eve so she and Tony could open their gifts to each other here.

She spotted the pink thing in/on/by her stocking right away...

It was what every good housewife (or someday housewife) should have...a pink and zebra striped broom!

Tony opened his gift from Morgan first...

Some sort of golf clubs...I can never remember what is what, but he seemed pretty happy with whatever it is...

Next Morgan opened her gift from Tony...

An iPad? Wow! I think she loves it!

Then, suddenly...in comes Andy and the black cloud better known as Helga Jean! He told her to 'find it' in the pile of gift wrap. Not sure what 'it' was, but she tried her best to dig 'it' out!

Andy told me he wanted to give me one of his gifts for me, the one that I have come to anticipate most of all, the one he makes for me. He told me to close my eyes. I did, but kept shooting in case I got a good photo of him and the gift...

I did! Here's what it is...

A Baby Andrew original...to go along with the Bicycle Wheel Christmas Tree? Isn't he a trip? Later on Christmas, we strung the lights on it and added a bow. I'll have to find photos of it and show you later.

Morgan got footie pajamas...

Helga Jean spread the love, ignoring the fact that Grandma told her no dogs on the couch...

Andy's gift was also an iPad and he quickly forgot that there were other people in the room...

Except for Helga, she won't let people forget about her!

He did come up for air...and to send a message...

It says, "Thank you muches."

About that time, the batteries in my camera died, but it really didn't matter. It was Christmas, time for family and friends. I had dinner with Vicky, Jamie and Jamie's parents. Later Vicky and Jamie and my mother joined us for snacks and celebration. I got no photos, but that's okay. I was there, just like all the kids were in 1997...

And imagine this...all through the day, we remembered that Jesus is the reason for the season!

Thanks for stopping in to see our celebration...and here's the biggest Christmas miracle...my tree is down! For those who haven't been here long, getting me to take the tree down is like pulling teeth. I love Christmas lights, decorations, the tree, and will use any and all excuse to keep it up. This year there was too much going on...the 2011 Christmas tree is history!

But we're still making history. Back soon with more going on.

But for now...go out and be a blessing to someone. I know I'm going to try!

Love,

Jan

2012-01-05T18:06:00.000-05:00

Retirement???

No, I did not retire! Please don't listen to Tony (or Andy) . You KNOW what trouble makers they can be when they put their minds to it!

Lots of things going on here, some good, some crappy, some just ho-hum, but since it's right after Christmas, everything is either ho-hummy or blah...

Christmas? I was dreading it, but we made it! Yes, we missed Mark, horribly. Lots of happy memories shared, tons of giggles, and yes, a bunch of tears but we made it! We had fun, we laughed, we hugged, we ate and we opened presents! Oh my the presents!

You remember that Christmas eve at my mother's house is a time for fun, don't you? Our stockings are filled with all kinds of stuff. This year there was so much stuff we switched from stockings to bags!

First we gathered in the living room and waited for everyone to finish eating and get settled. It was fun just visiting...

Then it was time for our Santa to pass out presents!

You never saw a blonde Santa before?

The rule was that you had to put on whatever was in your 'stocking' so everyone could see. Dan and Leslie seem confused?

Seems Les got the hang of it long before Dan did!

Did I mention that this year everyone got blinking Rudolph noses? Michael figured that one out quickly!

Vicky was busy finding a creative way to wear her feather boa, Catherine decided she'd rather be a blinking pirate than a reindeer!

We had a real treat this year, my niece, Jessica, was able to spend Christmas eve with us! It's been several years since she has done that. Her mom, Leslie, and her sister, Katlyn, were happy to have her there too!

Santa is so practical! The guys got hair...and most of them needed it!

And antlers! What would hairy men be without antlers?

Oh...and of course, inflatables!

Vicky got footie pajamas...

And mom did her impression of....???

And can you guess what those darn kids did next??

Ping pong, of course!

We had a good time, it was wonderful to spend time together as a family, but just like most good things in life, it was over way too quickly. I barely had time to run out the door so I could make the 11PM church service in our church and then it was time to go home, get into bed and go to sleep...because we just knew Santa would visit...

And he did, but that's another story for another day.

Aren't you glad that we're all back together again!

I missed you, I really did! Now I'm going to go downstairs and bother the kids...they need me!

Love,

Jan

2011-12-21T08:24:00.000-05:00

Ohhhhhhhhh, ya better be good...

I know, it's way too late to be thinking about being good. Oh well, maybe next year.

I've been so busy with life as well as Christmas preparations. Tomorrow we will change Internet, phone and cable TV providers and I may not get a chance to get on here and wish you all a joyous Christmas.

I'll be back with a vengeance after we clean up the last of the wrapping paper and eat a few ~~hundred~~ ~~million~~ billion calories.

Lots of changes in the past few months, more to come, but one thing that never changes: Jesus is the reason for the season.

If I don't get a chance to come back and 'talk' before then, have a safe and blessed Christmas, everyone!

With love,
Jan

Luke 2:10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.

2011-12-19T09:14:00.000-05:00

Talkin' ~~trash~~ garbage...

Last night, right after dinner, I was cleaning up my mess when I heard a gurgle and a glug...which can only mean the disposal was indisposed, or clogged!

First impulse: call Andy. I was not born with a common sense gene (I have to repeat "lefty loosey, righty tighty," over and over when replacing the top on the tooth paste container), and Tony did not inherit one from his father. (Remind me to tell you one day about the time he took the blades off the ceiling fan). Poor Andy. He had been doing 'chores' for me all day and had announced an hour before that he was going home and going to bed.

Tony and I had a short conference. What would Dad do? Make a mess, say bad words and unclog the darn thing. Well, let's do it.

We changed into work clothes and donned rubber gloves. We looked like amateur surgeons on the prowl for patients...or was it patience?

I went first. I managed to loosey one of those thingies...Tony went next and managed to loosey another...suddenly...

Of course I got the camera! How could I let YOU down?

Well, let's just say it was a good thing I got the bucket.

Moral of the story: Well, there is no moral, but the disposal is disposing and Tony is not changing his business major anytime soon...

So, do you have all your shopping/baking/decorating/wrapping done?

Get out there and get it done and while you are at it, remember to smile, open doors for fellow shoppers and don't pass that guy (or woman) ringing that bell without dropping a dollar or many in the kettle. The money will be well spent. They do wonderful things.

Next time, remind me to tell you about the guy undressing the mannequin in Kohl's last night.

I love you all-I am SO glad you stop by!

Love,

Jan

2011-12-16T08:16:00.000-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MORGAN!

A special day in our family, Miss Morgan celebrates her 22nd birthday!

Morgan has been a part of our family for soooo long now, it is hard to remember when she wasn't.

We loved including her in all our family activities (well maybe when she caught the bouquet at Katie and Brian's wedding, I was a tad nervous)...

Morgan is a real trouper. No matter what the activity, she is willing to have a go at it!

This year when our family was reeling from our loss, Morgan was right there, tackling all the chores no one thought of, organizing us and hugging us when we needed hugs even though her heart was breaking as well.

Too bad she didn't have her pink Dyson then, she would have cleaned up after us!

We all love her!

Don't they make a wonderful couple?

Happy birthday, Morgan! We love you. May God bless you and give you many more birthdays.

If you see Morgan out and about today, stop her and wish her a happy birthday.

I'm off...got lots to do, move things, shake things, rearrange things...

Be a blessing to someone today. I know I'm going to do my best.

Love,

Jan

2011-12-13T06:12:00.001-05:00

You know you wanna do it...

I was not going to post today. I am a busy woman with much going on (like going out to eat with friends at least three times in two days), but as I drank my coffee, again in bed with Race Car at my side, I remembered what I have to tell you.

I signed up for yet another event...

just click on the graphic above for details!

I've already signed up! Yeppers, sent in my money and am thinking about how many members of my family and extended family and friends I can get to do it with me.

Think of it...if you join us, you will have a chance to be included in our group photo, much like this one

but we will be wider since we will be running/walking/waddling to burn off all those Christmas cookies, ham sandwiches and all that egg nog!

So what are you waiting for?

Click right here and you can be part of this elite group!

Please say you will, you know you want to! So go and sign up and leave a comment telling me you did.

Now I am out of here. I have things to do, kids to annoy.

God bless you. Thanks for stopping in.

See you soon!

Love,

Jan

2011-12-12T07:08:00.002-05:00

If you could see me now...

Sitting here on my bed, my cat, Race Car, snuggled up beside me. I'm wearing flannel PJ's, a robe and the biggest smile I've had in a long time.

I'm thinking about yesterday...

Riding to church in the middle of the bench seat in the pick up, flanked by two of my most favorite men: Andy and Tony.

Standing in church with Andy, Tony, Morgan, Vicky and her friend Bonnie, singing with all my heart, tears flowing. I remembered something the pastor of my late father-in-law said at his memorial service. He talked about all the weeks after my mother-in-law died, how Dad would come to church, sit in his customary right-front seat, listen to every word Pastor Tim said and cry. Every week. I didn't understand then and now I do. The tears are not bad things, they are simply a statement. Your eyes translating what your heart is saying.

Those who loved much have much to lose.

The message was about Hope. Hope! Hope. Hope. I'm not going to start talking about it here and now, this is not the time or place, but HOPE is a wonderful gift. I reached out and grabbed it with both hands and am hangin' on for dear life.

Feels good.

After church, Andy, Tony, Morgan and I went to Panera for bagels and coffee. The bagels were good, but oh my, the new cream cheese, cranberry something??? is to die for (not literally). Next trip, I'm going to order just the cream cheese and a spoon. Yum.

Sitting there, we got to talking about the things Mark did. He was quite a character, you know. Like when we were standing in front of the White House and he stopped a woman and asked if she knew how to get to the White House. She kept trying to turn him around to see that it was right behind him and he kept asking what left handed streets he should take. Finally he turned and pretended to be shocked and she was delighted that she helped this out of town idiot find our president's home.

Or the time he told one of his sisters that Lake Authur in Moraine State Park was the only lake in the state that had unlevel water, that it sloped from south to north!

How about the time, right after they started dating, he sent Morgan out to buy Tony left handed golf balls since he played left handed...

What a character, what a tough act to follow, what precious memories. Can't imagine being left behind without them. What a gift!

I got to spend the rest of the day with another one of my favorite and most handsome men....my oldest son, Michael! We hit up the mall (where we got the last parking place in the state), looked at everything and bought very little, and stopped for a delicious and leisurely dinner on the way home.

Six hours of walking and talking...what a special time that was for me. We don't live all that close, he has such a busy schedule, a wife and family (if you can call a dog and cats family - they do), and so we frequently make phone conversations do instead of visits.

Today's schedule includes a dinner at the church with Vicky. My friend, Melody will be the speaker. I can't wait!

I know that I can't leave you without a picture...so here's one of my family taken about two years ago...and shows just how silly we are...

Now I'd like to stay and chat all day, but I have to figure out what a casserole is and then make one!

Have a wonderful day, be a blessing to someone, buckle up when you go out and come back! I love company.

God bless you,
Jan

PS...according to blogger, this is my 150th post. Celebrate!

2011-12-11T05:15:00.002-05:00

Some things go on, no matter what...

The sun comes up, the sun goes down, ice melts in hot temperatures and my car usually starts...

One other thing happens...Annett's Annual Ornament Exchange (and food fest). It's been going on for years and years. She makes it easy...bring a wrapped ornament...

And some food. I did not photograph the food because I was afraid to get that close. Those women are crazy!

I am not sure how many women were there, but lets just say, more than 30, less than 40. Yes, in her living room!

Next year if she invites any more, she'll have to rent bleachers! Every woman gets a chance to choose a 'mystery' ornament in the first round, and can 'steal' an ornament from another in the second round. There is much laughter, some shouting, lots of kidding and more laughter.

Every year there seems to be a 'theme' to the ornaments, this year it seemed to be snowmen. There were more snowmen than anything else

Every year there seems to be a favorite. This year it was a pig. A pink pig that seemed to be the favorite.

I lost count, this was either the fourth or fifth party I've attended. The past two years, Vicky came too!

I met Annett when she was six or seven. Her mother, Nancy is my BFF (and my oldest friend). I asked Vicky to take a picture of us together...

Vicky, turn the camera around! That's what you get when you hand a blonde a camera...

Okay...now that the spots have disappeared from before her eyes...let's get serious...

Of course my mouth was open...what did you expect? Let's try again?

There, Jan and Nancy, BFFs!

The three generations of girls...

Vicky, me, Nancy and Annett. In front is Larissa, Annett's daughter.

At a time when traditions are many and some are hard to deal with, a night with my girls was just what I needed..

Some traditions are broken. I have all my shopping done AND wrapped. Those who know me know that not only do I insist on shopping until the stores close on Christmas eve, but my Christmas eve late night wrapping sessions are legendary. There have been many Christmas eve mishaps: I ran out of tape and used Tupperware freezer labels and staples (not the prettiest packages).

I have also run out of gift tags and either made my own or label the packages with a sharpie marker...or (and this was the best), trusted my memory to remember which package goes to what kid. The results of that were many post-unwrapping exchanges...

I remember the year Tony (age 5) declared he would shake every package and if it didn't make noise, he would throw it away, unopened because he KNEW it was clothes. I remember Mark having to retrieve most of his gifts from the trash can since Mark always got clothes!

Christmas memories...what a good thing!

Remind me to tell you about Rudolph throwing up on the neighbor's porch...

I'm so glad you are here!

Now that you are done reading, go out and do something great!

Love,

Jan

2011-12-09T07:47:00.000-05:00

A lot is well...

Here it is, after 7 AM and I'm back in bed. Got my coffee and debated: should I give in and turn the furnace on? Should I just take a cup of coffee upstairs,climb into my warm bed, turn on the laptop, turn on the news and pretend all is well. Is it?

So many people ask, I thought you might like an answer. There is not a morning that has gone by in the past two months that I did not go downstairs to make coffee and have been hit by the reality of it all. Mark, who made my coffee every morning (and frequently brought me a cup before I got up), is gone. That alone is enough to bring me to a grinding halt...BUT...

I am blessed. I lost my partner in crime, my inspiration, my (fill in the blank) two months ago yesterday, but I never find it hard to come here and tell you about my blessings simply because there are many. I am a grieving, sniveling mess who has the best friends, pets, kids and readers...I lost much but I had much to lose and I still have much left. I have much because I AM BLESSED BEYOND ALL MEASURE and am always thanful for that.

God is good. My prayers have been answered. Not always the answer I had in mind, but my faith in HIM got me here and will certainly get me there, wherever that may be.

ALL is not well but MORE THAN ENOUGH is, and that keeps me on my toes.

So...

The dysfunctional family from House on the Hill is working on a top secret project. Can't tell, can't even hint, but I'm sure you'll find out sooner or later. Until then, want to see what is going on at Andy's house?

Please forgive the crappy photos. I will soon learn not to trust my phone for those Kodak Moments in life.

He got a new piece of furniture! No, not a sofa or a dresser...not a fridge or a bed...are you ready for this?

A PING PONG TABLE!

Yes, because he is a 25 year old guy with a home of his own, he decided to move the living room into a spare room and furnish his living room with a ping pong table but before he got the furniture moved, they decided to set up the table...

I'm thinking we won't be seeing much of Tony at home, he loves this game!

I got tired of watching the ball bounce, so I went out to get the guys pizza. Guess what they were doing when I got back?

You bet...they were playing ping pong!

But now they had a spectator! It's Pele!

But not for long, he's not named for a soccer player for nothing...he's a natural!

~sigh~

So, what's new in your world?

Time to run! Busy weekend coming up. I'll try to remember to take my camera so I can ~~tell~~ show you everything!

Go out and make someone smile?!?

Love,

Jan

2011-12-08T05:22:00.010-05:00

It takes sooo little...

A few weeks ago, Andy, Tony and I went out for dinner. On our way home, Tony got a call from their friend, Tom, who said he had a cell phone cover for Tony. Before I could say a word, we were on our way to Tom's house.

As I sat outside of Tom's house...

I got bored and started playing with my camera. I focused on a bike on the back of Jon's car, in front of me...

Just then, Andy, Tony, Jon and Tom came out and spotted this...

A tricycle in the neighbor's trash! Before I knew it, the tricycle was in Jon's car and we were headed for the parking garage in town...

The guys were so excited! They couldn't wait to take turns riding on the trike...

Tom pulled out his skate board, Jon got on the trike...

Next it was Andy's turn on the trike...

There he goes!!!

Everyone has to get in the act...Here comes Tom....

Whoopsie!

Tony? Aren't you going to go?

They just kept going...GO! GO! Andy!!!!

Of course, they can't be happy to just ride taking turns...

Let's ride tandem?

A triple?

What? They won't fit? Hey, someone bring that skate board!

I think they've got it!

Ahhhhh, it's cold, it's late and it's time to go home. Time to retire the trike....

Good night Jon, good night, Tom!

Tell me again, the difference between men and boys? I'm not suure I can tell.

Yes, I am blessed! Now YOU go out and be a blessing to someone.

See you soon,

Love,

Jan

2011-12-07T06:10:00.000-05:00

A day in the life of...

Tony, Morgan, and Sydney (Morgan's sister) invited me to go to CiCi's Pizza with them. Cici's, the all-you-can-eat pizza restaurant, is one of their favorite. When we got there they were so excited to find that they had a Tuesday special, all you can eat for $3.99...that is 3.99 plus the cost of your drink which is more expensive than champagne, but who is counting?

Before we go on, I apologize for the quality of these photos. I used my cell phone and had no idea that the phone that handles calls crappily would do double crappy photos...go figure!

Morgan and Sydney sat across from Tony and me...

I'm not a pizza lover but to me, all you can eat at Cici's is very little! I chose soup and a salad...

Sydney LOVED the pizza...

I think Morgan did too!

Everyone had their favorites. Morgan tried to get Sydney to try the one she liked best...

Sisterly love!

No one seemed to like the crust and before you knew it, it looked like they were playing Jenga with the crusts!

Tony seemed like he was having a good time too!

Ewwwww!

After pizza, the kids decided we needed to go to Goodwill.

I pretended like I did not know them for good reasons...

All of a sudden Tony called me to come and see what Morgan found...

A PINK Dyson!

We tested it and it worked great (just like a Dyson) and it was only $19.99! I told Morgan I'd buy it for her for her birthday. After that, she pushed it all through the store...

When she didn't have her hand on it, she had Tony Dyson sitting for her!

The kids had such a good time but I was happy to finally get them out of that store.

When we got to the house, Morgan and Sydney said good bye and left for home. They live next door to each other and couldn't wait to get home and Dyson the floors!

Tony and I went to Andy's so Tony could help him move some furniture because he got something new, but that's a story for another day...

Now I'm off to see what trouble I can find...the rest of you go out there and be nice!

Talk to you again soon,

I love you,

Jan

2011-12-06T06:36:00.000-05:00

Okay, Chris, I hear ya!

It wouldn't be hockey without a fight...right?

Mark's family has always been close but most of them live in the same area, visiting was easy. Our little family was 45 minutes to an hour away so drop in company was unlikely. We did most of our socializing in the summer at the river or on holidays.

Mark's death was a tragic reminder of how short life and how unpredictable life is and just how important family is. They have all stepped in to fill the void in our lives. They were there when the boys and I needed them and they are still there. We get together often.

One of the things we've been doing is spending Thursday evening with Mark's brother, Mike, his wife, Michelle and kids Tori and Tyler. This past Thursday was no exception. The boys and I went to their house to watch the Penguins smash the Capitols and to eat pizza.

The pizza was excellent. We all ate our fill before the start of the game. We were ready, happy and a family...except...

There seems to be one problem child in each family. We always believed it was Tony but now we are thinking it might be Tyler...

Of course, no hockey night, no matter where we gather, would be complete without a scrimmage, even if it is Mike and Michelle's family room...

And of course, no scrimmage, no matter how innocently it begins, leads to a good old fashioned hockey fight...

It gets pretty intense at times...

But any hockey fight that ends with the floor being mopped with Ovechkin

Can't be all bad, especially when we beat the Caps, 2-1!

There, Chris...an update, now get out there and hit the trail!

Love you guys, now go out and be a blessing to someone!

Jan

2011-11-30T20:35:00.001-05:00

Invite your friends?

Sitting here on my bed, reading blogs and feeling smug. Fans! I have fans and friends I never met. I have blogging friends who visit on a regular basis, almost as good as stopping by for a cup of coffee (remind me to tell you about my new coffee maker!)

I was feeling pretty smug as I went from blog to blog when I stopped by The Little Brown House where Sharyl was talking about winter coats. I can dig it, or at least I could until she showed us the coat she bought herself when she got 100,000 hits on her blog in ONE MONTH!

Is that even possible? I think that if you add the population of all the towns I've lived in, it would not be 100,000. Seriously...

Seriously, very seriously, would I want 100,000 strangers staring at my family, seeing my son in a blond wig? Would I mind if 100,000 strangers found out that I cannot swim?

Nah...not 100,000. I'd settle for half that.

Hey, I love you guys...all of you, so keep coming back, over and over...bring your friends!

Now since you have read all this, I guess I need to reward you with a photo...

Now I'm going to see why the dogs are barking...

Talk to you soon!

Love,

Jan

2011-11-29T16:57:00.001-05:00

Giving thanks!

To be honest, I was dreading Thanksgiving this year. Without Mark, holidays are hard even though I have enough good memories to last several lifetimes. One of Mark's duties was to get to Mom's house early so he could help preparing the meal as well as his favorite duty: carving the turkey.

We always celebrate Thanksgiving the Saturday after the holiday so everyone can spend the holidays with their 'other' families.

This year...

Dinner was scheduled for 5:00. I drove myself so I could have time to collect my thoughts and to pray.

Yes, I am a one of those old women you see on your way to SOMEWHERE: short, very short, so short that if she didn't have a little WV she wouldn't be able to see over the dash, grey hair, obviously alone in the car, but her mouth is moving, she's waving her free hand and nodding her head.

I prayed that our family would enjoy being together, that we would count each other as blessings in our lives. I prayed that all the members of my family would travel safely to Mom's and back home again.

I did not pray for the turkey.

At 4:45 I walked into my mom's house and saw this:

Michael praying?

I stood there for a minute and saw this:

And this:

Hmmmmm....I was thinking this was the day we were having our Thanksgiving dinner. I checked the dining room...

LOOKS like Thanksgiving...

Either by owner operator error, or equipment failure, the turkey was not done!

Andy and Tony amused themsves by playing coffee table ping pong:

As it got later and later, the desserts on the buffet started looking verrrrry good...

But before too many hours, no more than three and a half, Leslie anounced dinner was ready!

We no sooner swallowed the last morsel of food and the boys started clearing the table. How wonderful! They were being so helpful! Then the truth came out...

It was time for dining room table ping pong!

First Andy played Tony:

And then Catherine played against Michael:

~sigh~

So many blessings, so many reasons to give thanks...so many prayers answered, so few ping pong balls!

I am blessed, now you (and you and you) go out there and be a blessing in someone's life!

Love ya,

Jan

2011-11-28T22:49:00.000-05:00

Marsha, this one's for you!

I got an email from one of my favorite sisters-in-law this evening. The subject line said BLOG and the email said, "It hasn't been updated in at least 5 days!"

So Marsha, instead of going to bed at a decent hour, I'm updating.

I did not, nor have I ever gone shopping on Black Friday. Heck, I hardly ever go shopping. I hate to shop, but last week the boys took me shopping!

I bought a flashlight...

(No, I did not get a helmet. "Locals" will recognize it as Tony's.)

I got a water bottle!

AND...

I got a new bike!

Eight speeds, hand brakes and a seat as wide as Ohio...

And it fits my bee-hind just fine!

Look! I can ride with one hand! Next thing you know, I'll be unicycling.

Yeah, right!

Okay, Marsha, I'm going to bed now....ok?

Love,

Jan

2011-11-24T14:06:00.002-05:00

Gutbuster?

Another first in my life: my first cross country/trail race. This morning Andy, Tony, Morgan and a whole bunch of friends and relatives participated in the 35th annual Samuel Holland Gutbuster Race!

Now when I say race, don't think for a minute that I ran all that distance, up and down those hills, but please imagine that I gave it my best shot, up and over, down and out. Actually, the walk from the car to the start of the course would have done me in a year ago, so I'm pretty pleased.

We started early, way too early for me, stopping for supplies (Gatorade and cough drops)

And once we got to the park, we had a loooong walk down to the start line!

Some of us went faster than the rest. Once we got registered, we had to hang around for quite a while while they registered everyone.

We finally decided to take the after picture before, while all of us were standing:

The gang: Andy, Heather, Wes, Tyler, Sydney, Morgan, Tony, Mike, Me, Tori, Kayla and Jim!

The boys ran the 4 mile course, along with Heather and Wes. Morgan, Sydney and Tyler ran the 2 mile course, so did Tori and Kayla (we think). Mike, Jim and I SURVIVED the 2 mile course, which is a personal best for us. Another thing crossed off my Bucket List.

Now we're home, ready to shower and leave again, off on a quest for a turkey dinner. This holiday feels strange to me, and I don't even feel like leaving the house, but in the middle of all the sadness and grief is that reminder that I am blessed and have much to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving to all you!

Now don't just sit there, go out and be a blessing to someone else!

Love,

Jan

2011-11-23T22:58:00.001-05:00

Life Lesson #5840

If one of your sons hands you the jar of grated cheese as you sit down to enjoy your pasta...check the lid...

~sigh~

Some of us never learn...

Love,

Jan

2011-11-18T06:32:00.000-05:00

Only at my house...

For reasons best left undiscussed, I spent most of yesterday in my sewing room/studio/place to play with glass. I found lots of strange stuff, but this wig, a left over from my dollmaking days, was one of the better things...

Trust me, it looks better on this roll of paper towels...

I INSISTED everyone here try it on...who cares about cooties?

First Vicky tried it on...

Hmmmm, not that awful but not good?

Next we forced Morgan to try.

Nah, she's such a stunning brunette, blonde just doesn't do it.

Morgan decided to help Tony try it on...

Oh my...

Are you sure you're ready for this????

Yeahhhhhhhhhhhh...no comment from me, either.

Where is the photo of me wearing the wig, you ask?

Ain't gonna happen. No way, no how, nope!

Where is Andy, you ask? He's no dummy. He worked midnight this week and was home, tucked in all cozy with the dog and cat, Helga and Pele.

Family? You can't sell them so you gotta love them!

God bless you!

Jan

2011-11-16T06:27:00.002-05:00

When a bib is not enough...

Recently, Tony had some dental work done. He said he couldn't see what was going on, so he took this photo and of course he had to send it to me:

What did we do before 'smart' phones?

Busy day today, I try to keep busy!

God bless you!

Jan

2011-11-15T08:57:00.004-05:00

What are those darn kids up to now?

It's Sunday at 7:30 AM. This is what I see in my driveway:

That's Morgan, Tony and Sydney (Morgan's sister). Are they getting ready for church?

Not dressed like that!

Guess they have something else in mind...like the...

Marshall Mangler?!?, an 8K race through the woods, up the hills and down. Crazy? you bet they are but not as crazy as the people who did the 22.5 or 50K!

Oh, and by the way, NO, I did not join them. As I said before...I went to church.

YES, there were other crazy people out there, we had a gang of them representing our friends and family.

Since I wasn't there, we only have a few photos, but I think you'll get the picture...

Look, here comes Vicky, I think!

And there she goes...Run, Vicky, Run!

There goes Morgan!

Spectators? That will never do! Get out your running shoes, Tyler and Uncle Mike (Mark's brother and his son).

Don't worry, we'll have them running in the next race...or the one after that!

What do they see?

Here comes Wes and Sydney:

And there they go!

Go, Sydney! Go!

Since Tony was our chief picture-taker, and since he and Andy were very close in time (Andy asked me to announce that he not only beat Tony, but was in good enough shape to take Helga on a long walk the next day!

Here are my three problem children:

Tony, Vicky and Andy!

And a few more...

Sydney, Morgan, Tony, Vicky and Andy.

Let's not forget Heather, Morgan's mother, and her friend, Wes.

Hard to believe they just ran 8K, isn't it?

And the whole gang:

Those are Sydney's shoes in the foreground. Guess her feet hurt!

And that's not all!

Wes is a hairdresser. After going out to eat and watch the

Steeler's game, he was going to trim Morgan's hair for her. This is what Tony and Morgan looked like when they got there...

They think maybe Tony got bored...so he picked up the clippers and...

Oh nooooooooooooo!

Tony and Morgan after:

I know...it's only hair and quite a learning experience. When he got home and tried to pull his shirt over his head, he said his hair was like velcro! The shirt got stuck!

The results have not been posted yet, but the boys think they finished somewhere in the middle. They seemed happy and since they sat around the island in the kitchen and looked up more races, they must like it!

Who knows...maybe they will find one that either appeals to me, or one that has a cute shirt that is not orange and I'll be out there racing with them!

Until then, I'll be (almost) training. We have inside info that in addition to the Friday night community bike rides, there will be Friday night community walks.

Count me in!

So why are you still sitting there in front of your computer? Get out there and be a blessing to someone!

I love each one of you...

Jan

2011-11-14T05:15:00.001-05:00

It's S-O-U-P-E-R!

Nothing like a cool, crisp fall day to make me feel soupy...

And today is one of those days..

Mmmmmm mmmmm mmmmm...chicken and rice!

Was it good? It was so good my son-in-law gave it his seal of approval and that's an honor!

Stay warm, stay well and remember to stop and smell the soup bones...

2011-11-13T06:08:00.000-05:00

BOW?

I hope you've figured out by now that when Andy calls, things happen...

Yesterday he called and told me that I might want to meet him in the driveway and while I was at it, maybe I should bring my camera.

I was waiting! What do you think of this?

And how about these?

And is this something you might want?

Would you park your hiney here?

And would you be impressed with this, or know the significance of it's color?

Does this make you swoon?

Or couldn't you just fall in love with this happy smile?

Yes, you are looking at the BOW or Bike Of (the) Week...

Which, besides the house on the hill, is the only thing that is older than his mother (according to Andy).

It's a bike circa 1940 in all it's glory and Andy could not be happier!

After we admired his newest acquisition, he invited me to his house to see last week's BOW:

Whatta kid!

Happy Sunday! I'm off to church while Andy, Tony, Morgan, Vicky, Morgan's mother and sister are off running a 5K race. Yes, they are crazy but I love 'em!

God bless you!

Jan

2011-11-12T06:15:00.006-05:00

A day late and a dollar short and a heartfelt THANK YOU!

Yesterday morning I woke up and remembered to count my blessings. Not only did I have a roof over my head, coffee in my pot, toast in my toaster and warm (hand knit) socks, but I had the 3 F's:

Faith, Family and Freedom!

I practiced my faith by saying a prayer of thanks for my family and freedom and decided to get dressed and go to town and pay homage to those who secured our freedom for us...at the Veteran's Day Parade!

My adopted home town is small in stature and population, 2.7 square miles and only 15,000 people, but we take our parades seriously!

ALL the county high school marching bands participate...

Scout troups and other organizations take time to march and honor our veterans:

Did I ever tell you that Butler is the REAL home of the Jeep? Yes, the Jeep was invented here!

Of course, no local parade would be complete with the Shriners in their funny cars!

They are so funny, doing figure 8's. I love to hear the kids squeal when it looks like they will crash into each other.

Here comes the county treasurer!

Usually the guy who walks behind these horses with a snow shovel and a garbage can gets a lot of applause, this year was no exception!

The kids standing next to me were so impressed with these guys. They had real swords!

Don't know who this guy is, but he sure wins hands down for the best sweater:

~sigh~

Don't you just love parades? I do!

Hey, even though Veteran's Day is gone, it's never too late to say thanks when you have a chance.

God Bless America!

Love you guys,

JAN

2011-11-11T08:47:00.003-05:00

Good news!

I've said it before, life can change in an instant, a millisecond. Here's more proof:

Here is an old photo of me and my cousin, Sue, taken last spring...

Not the very best photo of us, but you can see that Sue is a very nice, attractive woman. What you can't see is that when this photo was taken, she was the very proud grandmother of ONE, her beautiful grand daughter, Sophia, the daughter of Sue's daughter, Stacy, and her husband, Dan.

Life was good...

Suddenly, at 7:11 AM on November 7, 2011, Dan and Stacy's family of three became this...

A beautiful family of FOUR!

Welcome to Miss Emma Marie, who bounced into this world weighing 8 lbs, 14 ounces (nice try, Stacy, but no membership to the 9 pounder club-try again!)!!!!!

Emma Marie was welcomed and loved by big sis, Sophia Grace!

A Baby is Such a Nice Way to Start a Person

~contented and happy sigh~

2011-11-09T23:15:00.003-05:00

It's in the bag...

On Monday, Andy called me to ask two things: 1. If I was free on Tuesday, 2. If my sewing machine was in good working order.

It was not unusual for him to ask those questions. It meant one of two things: 1. He blew the rear out of his favorite pants, or 2. He had some strange project going on and I was the only one crazy enough to participate in with him.

Turns out it was not #1. Tuesday evening he comes banging into the house with two rachet straps, a belt and an empty 40 pound dog food bag and tells me we're going to make a prototype.

A prototype? You have to remember that this is the kid who made a Christmas tree out of bicycle wheels, so making a prototype out of a dog food bag isn't all that strange...

We went into my sewing room and began to plan...and I began to sew, but I guess I was too slow, because the next thing I knew, he was...

Yes! He took over the sewing machine...and did quite well. He even mastered sewing in reverse...

He cut a little, sewed a little, pondered a bit and sewed some more...

He fiddled and finangled, stitched and strapped...

Finally he decided it was time for a try-on...

It's almost done! All it needs is a...

And if it looks like this...

It can only mean one thing....

We're good to go!

Look at that grin...can only mean one thing...

Success!

Sigh...if anyone would have told me a month and two days ago that I would be counting my blessings and feeling thankful for what I have as well as what we lost, I would not have believed it...but God is good and in the midst of our grief, we still have faith, family and fun. I am loved, and I am truly blessed.

Good night and God bless.

Love,

Jan

2011-11-09T09:59:00.000-05:00

This is my story and I'm (not) sticking to it!

Yesterday evening, about 6:30, Andy and I were working on a 'top secret' project when I remembered it was election day and I hadn't voted yet!

I left him in my sewing room and jumped in my car and high tailed it to the polling place and took my place in line. I was excited to voice my opinion on the future of my county and joyously anticipating displaying my:

only to be told that they were out of stickers! How could this be true? Is it even legal to operate a polling place without them?

I was sad, I was dismayed, I was ticked. I threatened to take my vote to another location but they pointed out to me, I had to vote there or not at all...so I voted, which always makes me happy, I jumped in my car and drove home quickly since I left Andy in my sewing room with my beloved sewing machine and serger...

Yesterday was a good day...almost! I'll tell you more about it later, but for now, there are things that need done, phone calls to be made...

Love you all,
Jan

2011-11-04T01:09:00.001-04:00

For what it's worth...

Evenings can be long and lonely around here at the house on the hill. Fortunately, I have been blessed with friends and family, both mine and Mark's. I can't tell you how much I love it when someone calls to say they are stopping by for a visit.

Tonight was one of those nights. Mark's brother, Mike, his wife, Michelle and kids Tori and Tyler came for a visit tonight. Tony made us tacos and Andy and Morgan came to help us eat them. Tacos are his specialty. They were delish!

Eating tacos was educational for us. Tyler made his own, which was great, but the filling kept squirting out the bottom of his tortilla.

Aunt Jan to the rescue!

I always wondered what those purple clips were for...they sure kept those olives from squirting out!

After dinner, Michelle and I cleaned up the kitchen while the rest of the gang went out to the garage to play........

Garage hockey!!!!!

Sorry, there is so much junk in the garage that you can hardly see Andy in all his goalie gear...look closely...

Tyler in action!

Looks like Mike got the short end of the stick?

Tori was right in the game!

Tony didn't do too bad either...

Suddenly, someone remembered that we need to be careful...wear protective gear. Mike was the first to comply...

Didn't seem to help his game much...

Who won?

It was a tie!

Maybe we can have a rematch next time?

~sigh~

I am blessed!

2011-10-31T12:38:00.002-04:00

Happy Halloween!

We've never been very big on Halloween celebrations and trick-or-treating in our family. Since we moved up here on the hill, we've had a total of 9 trick-or-treaters in seven years. Needless to say, after the first year or two of disappointment -not to mention tons of left over candy to eat, we stopped buying candy to pass out.

We should have known better. The very next year, we had two kids show up and we were not prepared. Mark, frantically searching for something to pass out, opened his wallet and handed the taller of the two a dollar bill and made him promise to share.

Realizing that if the word got out, we'd have 458,588 kids beating on our door hoping for a dollar, we decided to go out to dinner instead.

You would think we'd know what to do the following year, right?

Heck no...at the appointed witching hour, 6PM, two little kids, dressed as super heros, knocked at the door...this time Mark frantically pulled the cork out of the bottom of the family piggy bank and dumped the change on the table and searched out two quarters for the kids. That year he got smart and ran to the store for a package of Kit Kats, his favorite candy bar. Since we had no more tricksters, he had to eat them himself!

Last year Mark was away on a business trip so my brother and I took my niece to my mother's house so she could trick-or-treat in our old neighborhood. Even though my family moved into that house in 1960, that block feels like it is frozen in time. Many of the neighbors then are still there, or the house has passed on to other family members.

Daniel and I followed my mom and niece around and when people answered the door, we gave them candy! No one seemed shocked. One neighbor, a classmate from high school who now lives in his grandparents' house, thanked us as though we did it on a daily basis...go figure!

Anyway...I have a Growth Group meeting at the church tonight, Tony and Morgan are taking the daughter of a friend out and Andy said he's working on his lawn mower in my garage...if you are going out, stay safe. If you are staying home, hope you have a bit of candy left over for a late night snack.

Happy Halloween,
Jan

2011-10-30T23:10:00.000-04:00

As good as it gets...

This morning, during church, I let the tears flow. Yes, I am blessed, but yet I am broken hearted. Missing Mark seems to be a full time job. My son, Andy, put his arm around me and squeezed. We are in this together!

Shortly after church, my sister-in-law, Marsha, showed up on my door step bearing not one, but TWO boxes from Panera! One box contained Bear Claws, the other bagels. Yum-Oh!

Shortly after Marsha left, My friend, Deb, showed up in the driveway to wisk me away to get some hot soup and a good ol' girl talk. Yes, my heart and soul felt warm. Can't beat friends, can you?

Well...this evening, the kids and friends made me dinner. Delicious, stick-to-your ribs, warm and delicious food.

What? I am blessed, you say? You bet I am. Although I have lost lots, I have been blessed that much and more...

After dinner, the kids pulled out the pumpkins they bought to carve. We have never been a Halloween family, but carving pumpkins has been a tradition. Well, almost a tradition...

Worry about sharp knives? Not when Super Andy is around. According to him, real men use power tools...

But then, Tony is very safety conscious...

Soooo, when you put together real men with power tools, pumpkins and protective head gear, what do they make? Bowling balls, of course!

Only in our house, only my kids, only my life.

Happy Sunday!

God bless you!
Jan

2011-10-26T09:14:00.001-04:00

True Confessions...

If you have been around for any length of time, you will remember three of my four kids entering the Triathlon in July.

Sunday, Mark's Aunt Ruth from Geneva, NY, came to the memorial service and told Andy about a triathlon in Geneva, NY, in July...The WoolSports Mussleman Triathlon.

It didn't take but a minute and the boys decided they were going to do it. Yes! Another triathlon! Seems to them, it was a no brainer.

Today Andy stopped by after work for hugs and hot chocolate. We talked about staying with Aunt Ruth for the event. Aunt Ruth offered to house them as long as they played at least one game of cards with her AND let her win!

Andy asked me why I didn't plan on entering it as well. With my weight loss, my knee feels great, I might be able to fake running the distance, I can ride a bike (pretty well), but....

True confession: I cannot swim! I can dog paddle, tread water, float on my back, even swim under water but I cannot swim from point A to point B.

I don't think I ever told anyone this. I know that it was a shock to Vicky. Andy didn't believe it and Tony said it kind of made him feel guilty that everything we did involved rivers...

I'm not sure that Mark ever knew, but may have suspected. I know my parents and siblings did not know (even though my parents sent me for swimming lessons)...

Now YOU know...

2011-10-25T14:59:00.001-04:00

Remembering

Sunday was the memorial service for Mark. I was sitting in the front of the church and dare not look behind me, so I did not see how many people were there but on Sunday night our pastor told me it was a packed house. I get goosebumps just thinking about it. I knew he was a special guy, but did not realize how many people knew it too.

Pastor Dave did a wonderful job. He set the theme for the service (and THIS BLOG was mentioned) by telling some of our favorite stories. My wonderful brother-in-law, Mark (Debra's husband), spoke about knowing Mark for thirty years and their son, Stephen, offered a prayer.

Afterwards, I greeted people for what seemed like hours. Old friends who traveled for hours, customers who drove over 100 miles to meet us...

People gave us cards and flowers, sent food and even a box filled with comments from friends but the gift that sticks out in my mind today is this...

When Tony played high school inline hockey, we had a few (ahem) aggressive players who racked up many MANY penalties. The parents bought this hat. If your child was in the penalty box, you had to wear the hat. It was supposed to encourage you to talk to your kids about sportsman like conduct. Josh, one of our friends who lost his own father way too soon a few years ago, brought this hat as well as a smile to our faces...

Don't wanna talk about how many times Mark wore this hat.

Note: For a few days, I thought about this blog, about how it represented our family, our life with Mark at the head of our table and I thought of closing it. After the pastor mentioned it on Sunday and many people commented on it at the memorial service, I reconsidered it. We are still very much a family and Mark is still very much a part of us, if only in our hearts. I am an older, wiser and sadder Jan, but I still have the joy of knowing the Lord and claiming his promise that we will meet again one day.

If you will come to read, I will come to write. If it is in your heart to pray for us, we'd appreciate it. We will pray for you.

Love to all,

Jan

2011-10-16T04:28:00.002-04:00

Arnie

In the past week, I have gotten many phone calls, email, face book messages and even visits from people who cared for our family while we grieve for my husband, their father.

People asked and I shared Mark's story so many times, I can almost tell it without tears, but there is even more to the story. A wonderful love story.

First of all, I was Mark's great love, but Arnie, his dog, loved him unconditionally. Arnie came into our lives when he was 2, in 2000. It was not love at first sight, but it quickly became a love story.

Every weekend, Mark and Arnie would make countless trips to Lowes. Actually, anywhere you went in the car was Lowes and Arnie was happy just to be going with Mark. Week after week, Wendy's frosty after Frosty, they loved to hang out together. Some weekends, Arnie would just sit in the van in case Mark wanted to take him somewhere!

Mark had a home office. The most important piece of office furniture was a dog bed, They spent hours in there, Mark working, Arnie napping. They loved to spend weekends at the river where the neighbors commented that Arnie followed Mark everywhere!

About 2 months ago, Arnie seemed to be losing his appetite and dropping weight. I took him to see our vet and she discovered that he had a 'significant' heart murmur and advanced kidney failure. She was surprised he was alive and told me that we needed to have a talk, a check list of signs that he no longer had quality of life and when to declare that no heroic measures were to be performed.

I really knew that it was very close to that, but because Mark loved that darn dog so much, I felt I could not spring it on him in that way. I asked her about the possibility of keeping him comfortable through the weekend so Mark could say good bye.

It was not easy, not for me, not for Mark. I had to medicate Arnie several times a day, give him a liter of sub cutaneous fluid 3 times daily and prepare special foods. It was more difficult for Mark. He had to leave on Monday on a business trip. He was sure that Arnie would be gone when he got home.

That darn dog rallied! By Monday he was walking around, by the end of the week, his tail was wagging. By time Mark came home, he met him at the door. Our vet warned us that kidney damage was not reversible, so we made up our minds to treat him to favorite foods, let him sleep on the sofa, rub his ears and make the most of the time we had left.

The day after we came home from Washington, the day before he died, Mark commented that Arnie hadn't eaten. Mark and I went out to dinner and then took Arnie on a long, slow walk down to the river. On Saturday morning, Mark said he still was not eating. We didn't say it, but we knew it was probably time.

Time...a funny thing. By noon, Mark was gone. Andy and I left the hospital and went to get Arnie. We knew then...it was time.

On Monday afternoon, Andy, Tony, Morgan and I took Arnie to the vet's office. Dr. Leia, the techs and our family cried as we said good bye to Arnie.

In a way, they were lucky. Neither had to mourn the other. In another way, we are blessed. We are the keepers of the memories.

Hard to believe they are gone. We miss you, Mark and Arnie.

2011-10-15T14:25:00.002-04:00

Just half

In Mark's family, frugality ruled. My late father-in-law was famous for saying, "Just half," when you asked him if he wanted3ything...a cup of coffee, a piece of cake...whatever it was, Dad only wanted half.

Now his self discipline was not all that great and he might have three or four half-cookies or two half cups of coffee but the point was, he would not waste anything if he took it in small incrments. Long after his passing, we were still telling each other that we only wanted half.

Today was another half in our lives: Three of my children ran the Buffalo Creek Half Marathon. Yes, Andy, Tony and Vicky ran. Yes, this is the first for all three. Yes, they will probably do more of these.

My day started about 7AM with these jokers in my kitchen:

After a repeat of last night's discussion on shoes, socks and underwear. they were finally ready and out the door. I got a few phone instructions, a few text messages after they left, but I felt good...except...

Andy had been running for a few months, Vicky ran all summer and both were ready and registered for the race. Tony hadn't run since July and didn't decide until last night to race. Well, he's a big boy...

I picked up Morgan, her friend Gretchen and her 'bonus brother' Ty and we headed for Freeport to see the end of the race. It was cold! I was wishing I had though of mittens but the runners were coming in:

Lots of them. According to the director, there were almost 900 runners registered. The only problem was...no Andy, no Tony and no Vicky!

Finally, off in the distance we saw...

Tony in the yellow, Andy in the blue shirt and Vicky in black...they got closer...

What are they looking at? Here comes Tyler, in the gray hoodie, to run in to the finish line with them!

He kept up with them. He loves Andy and Tony!

Tony was exhausted but so happy to see Morgan!

The boys' friend, Chris, who is also the race director, had a sign made just for the boys...

My athletes...

Two more things about today...

1. I got to the finish line first (doesn't matter that I drove, I'm an old lady...humor me!

2. The boys said they had a 'sign' from their dad...Tony was running out of energy when from out of nowhere, a pretty girl in yoga pants ran past them. Both boys said it gave them the incentive to keep moving just kidding about the sign, but it does give us a chance to talk about Mark)!

2011-10-15T00:22:00.000-04:00

Ride to remember

Our small town has a bike commission! One of their activities is a regular Friday night ride through town. Starting in a local parking lot, the ride, with riders of every age, shape and ability, rides around town, through city parks and back again. Afterwards, those who like, stop for a bite to eat at one of the many restaurants in town, trying to choose a different one each week.

Andy and Tony bought us bicycles last Christmas so we might join the ride. I was never able to do it yet (I'm still in training), but Mark really enjoyed those Friday night rides (and pizza and beer afterwards).

This week, Andy declared they would ride, rain or shine and called it the Ride to Remember. Tonight, lots of our family and friends joined the ride. Those who were unable to ride, gathered in the parking lot to see the riders gather and some joined us for pizza afterwards...

Here comes Andy, driving Mark's pick up filled with bikes!

Mark's nephew Tyler...

My great brother-in-law, Mike being more than a little silly...

Andy testing Tyler's bike...

Everyone getting ready to ride...Andy in the red hoodie, Tony in the green sweater...

Before they left, most of the riders stopped for a group photo...

And...they are off!

I have to take a moment to thank all Mark's family, some who rode, some who came to cheer for those who did. There were friends and family everywhere! Michael and Catherine came too.

We lost a lot, but it is becoming more and more obvious...We are blessed beyond measure!

Thanks everyone for your comments, email, calls and comments. We could not imagine surviving without your loving support. We love you!

2011-10-09T00:55:00.000-04:00

In a heartbeat, or in this case, the lack of one...

Your life can change, your world can tilt in strange ways, your heart can break.

Trust me, I know. This afternoon, unexpectedly and suddenly, my husband of 26 years died of a massive heart attack. My life is forever changed, my world is spinning out of control, my heart is broken.

Still, his sense of family, his faith and his belief each one of us is capable, worthy and lovable as well as his faith in God will pull us through this, one second at a time.

I will miss him fiercely. Prayers welcome.

Love,
Jan

2011-10-08T09:36:00.000-04:00

Road trip! From one wheel to four and back to two?

One of the best 'touristy' things (the best thing was the people we saw) we did on our trip was...

We saw Washington, DC by segway! What a blast! I had this bright idea that we should try it and booked a three hour tour, with instruction and tour guide, over the internet. I wasn't sure how it would work out, but I figured if the kids could ride around on one wheel, pedaling all the time, surely I could ride on two if all I had to do was stand there...

The company limits groups to 8 people. Our group of 6 was just the right size. There was Mark and me and a family of four from Perth Australia.

Before the tour started, they made us watch a video of what not to do...don't get too close to the edge of the pavement, don't lean forward too far, don't lean backwards too much...be careful not to get too close to other segways, no cell phones, etc. The consequences were illustrated with a cartoon character falling forwards/backwards on his head. Scary!

Kaitlyn, our tour guide, took us outside for instruction/practice.

I was nervous! By time it was my turn, I was shaking but Kaitlyn assured me I would be fine, but just to be sure, she told me that we would travel in single file and that she would like me to stay right behind her (like the bad kid on the school bus?).

Sadly, my camera spent most of the time in the bag on the handlebars. We were warned not to try to take pictures while driving, and it would have been a little difficult to photograph the first mishap...I ran my segway into another segway while trying to navigate a curb cut. No damage or injuries, but a renewed fear of being out of control!

Kaitlyn told us that all tour guides had to be licensed and that she had to take a test. She certainly knew her stuff. She was an excellent guide, taking us from monument to monument, navigating traffic and sharing history and current events.

The White House!

At the Lincoln Memorial, we stopped for a break (it's not easy standing still that long). We walked around the Korean Memorial

and a few other places. We climbed the stairs to the Lincoln Monument. Sadly, the reflecting pool was empty. They are working on it.

On our way to the Capitol, I felt confident enough to move to the back of the line and travel with Mark. We were heading across the Mall on a gravel path when Mark commented he thought he could 'peel out' on the gravel. I should have run...

I did not, he did and he performed the first and only 'roll over' of the tour...NO, he was not hurt; NO, I did not get a photo, but I did get the giggles!

What a blast! Would I do it again? In a heartbeat! In fact, we're planning to do a family segway tour of Pittsburgh in the next few weeks! Why don't you join us?

Time to go! Mark is at the river waiting for me to join him...our time there for the year is coming to an end but this weekend the weather is supposed to be perfect...

See ya later! Have a good weekend, drive carefully and look both ways before crossing!

2011-10-07T12:46:00.001-04:00

But before we left...

We headed for North Park to watch a Month of Mud race. Andy and Tony raced on unicycles in the first race and Tony raced his mountain bike later in the day. It was cold and rainy, as Month of Mud races tend to be (maybe that's why they are named that?)

Everyone huddled in a pavillion, waiting for the race to start. They go on, rain or shine and it's usually rain!

Andy in black and yellow jacket, Tony in white helmet...

The course was marked with what appeared to be crime scene tape to me, but I think mud should be considered a crime, so it seemed appropriate. The number of laps is determined by the leader of the class. As many laps as he or she completes in 30 minutes plus one lap. Dave, pictured below, was the leader...which is always expected. That man has legs made of steel, I swear and HE'S ALWAYS SMILING! Seriously...the workout on these races is unbelievable and yet Dave and Andy always smile as they are racing...???

The course went through a tunnel under the road, a pavilion and round trees and swing sets...Here's Andy coming through the pavilion with Tony right behind him (of course, Thing one and Thing two.)

Issac, one of the other "local" unicyclers came by looking a little muddy...

Tony didn't look all that clean by this point...

How do you steer when you don't have a steering wheel? Here's a clue...

Also, as part of the course, there are obstacles set up. There are rules as to how high they must be, how far apart...but all I know is that you have to stop, get off and carry your bike while running through the mud.

Here's the end of the race. Dave (with legs of steel) came in first in the unicycle division, Andy second and Tony third...You can just see Tony's head, he's behind the guy with the blue jacket.

After the race...my Thing one and Thing two!

I love that they do things together and seem to enjoy spending time with each other...

We wanted to get on the road...so we didn't stay for the bicycle race but we heard it was a muddy mess...

The road trip was a blast! Details later!

Glad you stopped by...come back soon!

2011-10-05T09:04:00.000-04:00

Road Trip!!!!

Yes, we're out and about! This is our "practice" vacation. In the past few years, every time we have time off, we head for the river. This year, with all the construction going on out there, it didn't seem like a vacation for Mark (although he did not protest one bit), so we thought we'd like to take a trip or two...

But would we LIKE it? No clue...so we thought we'd take a practice trip. Four nights to our nation's capitol. Lovely hotel with the BEST bed in the world...and pillows to die for...excellently good coffee and tons and tons of things to do (not to mention dinners with friends and family)...superb meals (the choices are endless...some of the best people watching...

Do we like it?

Duhhhhhhhhhh, of course we do!

2011-09-30T08:21:00.001-04:00

Ahhhh.....finally!

After more than a month of dealing with computer issues, I ~~(the cheapest~~ most frugal) woman alive finally went out and bought a new laptop. A shiny new laptop with a screen as big as a drive in movie, a keyboard that will acommodate long nails and speakers that will wake the snoring beast that sleeps next to me...

I'm excited!

While I was out there shopping for a few specific things: jeans that fit me, jeans that made Mark look like he did not just fall off the turnip truck, a coffee maker and a camera bag big enough to hold all the photographic equipment I will probably never use since I have a love affair going with my latest zoomer, I realized that a new laptop was a necessity if I was going to blog ever again.

So here I am, typing away while I am trying to gather my thoughts together so I can tell YOU where I've been and what's new here at the House on the Hill as well as all the news from The river. (Note, the 'r' in river is not capitalized since Andy claims that THE RIVER is the St. Lawrence and as much as I love the Kiski, it just can't compete with THE RIVER!

Oh...it's so good to be back!

Good grief, am I rambling again?
See you soon,
J

2011-08-11T02:15:00.000-04:00

THIS is what I saw last night...

I get no respect!

(We were at the Butler Farm Show)

2011-08-10T06:58:00.002-04:00

I smell a rat!

Last week Andy and I went to visit Vicky and Jamie and got to spend some time with Peaches,

Vicky's rat who thinks she's a dog...

No, those are NOT my feet. I find it difficult to put my feet on the floor when there is a huge white rat scurrying around...but Vicky has no problem with it...

In fact, she LOVES Peaches!

A lot!

Go figger.....