Ummel Thanksgiving

The Ummel Thanksgiving was fun but yet sad day. This was our first big holiday without Grandpa. That made the day rough. But the fun part was meeting the newest member of our family. Teagan.... what a cutie. Everyone waited and took their turn getting to hold her. But Great Grandma was first in line. Great Grandpa sure would have loved his first Great Grandchild. We ate lots of food and visited. The kids were in and out most of the day. Alan and Tanner even took Kim with them to hunt down the coyotes. (We said they were going to use her for coyote bait. Haha) And no....they didn't get the coyote. Everyone had a enjoyable day!!!!! :-)

BlaCK FrIDay

We divided and conquered!!! Have you ever seen lots of women RUNNING into Wal-mart? They do! And @ 4:30AM!! In the SNOW!! Jessica, Michele and I were one of the "DUMB" ones who got up @ 3:30 am so we could hit the day after Thanksgiving sales. And we did well! We wanted a new tv after the electrical contractors blew out ours. AND WE GOT IT!!!! YEA!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Get Jenny!

Be careful!! If you don't smile...you WILL get a kiss!

Lots of fun!

Kisses for Aunt Charlene...Lots of love

Grandma's Love

Grandpa's Love

Sweet Jessica Kay

Grandpa and Grandma

(As Jessica says....Gilligan on his 3 hour tour)

Sister's minus 1



Fire! Fire!

Thanksgiving was pretty great this year. The whole family was home and we had a wonderful time. We started out remembering the "good ole days" with Grandma starting a fire in the oven and setting off the fire alarms. We filled our tummy's. We visited. And as promised to Char.... we put up the Christmas tree.

Vacation

Mom, Dad and Char went on "vacation" this weekend. Midland Marketing (Dad's employer) took them to Harrah's Casino in Topeka for a night of food, fun and gambleing. Jessica met up with them and ate supper. Then gambled away. Sounds like they had lots of fun but were ready to get home.

You've got to be KIDDING ME!!!!

This last week there have been electrical contractors replacing the electric lines on our road. Every night I have been coming home to a home that was cold and no lights. YUCK!! Friday morning one of the men knocked on my front door. (I was off work for the day) They were turning the electricity off for the WHOLE day. They said the would bring me a generator so that I would have heat. It was so COLD!! Let's say that was NOT the best choice. The generator didn't work right. POWER SURGE! Yep...you guessed it. I finally told them to just turn it off. It was not working right. When they turned the electricity back on..... my tv and stove was not working. They have been here today and the news is in. They are going to be able to fix my stove. NOT the tv. BUT...... they are going to replace it. YEA!!!! Even thou I have not enjoyed the last few days I do have to say that those guys were very nice. They really have went out of their way to keep us warm. I thank them for that!!!! Jorge has NOT liked this week at all!!! Obviously he does NOt like the cold. Every time you would cover up with any blanket....he would snuggle under. I do have to say that it was cute. Michele came home today from college for Fall Break and Thanksgiving. As soon as she laid on the couch and covered up..........

Update

Michele wrote........ "update the fire alarm count... we had one last night at 2 am, that makes 14"

TaXi

Life is like a taxi. The meter just keeps a-ticking whether you are getting somewhere or just standing still. -Lou Erickso

SMokEY the BeAr

FIRE! FIRE! Michele moved into the dorms on August 21st. And if there is one thing that is making her mad.......it is the FIRE ALARMS! The first alarm went off when some guys....no doubt....GUYS!!!! decided to warm up their pizza (wrapped in tinfoil) in a microwave. DUH! You name it....it has been done. The kids have pulled the alarms for fun, put tinfoil in the microwave, sprayed hairspray in front of the alarms, anything to set off the alrams.

On Saturday Michele got a text from her boyfriend Andy..... "HAHAHAHAHAHA". Michele texted him back..."HAHAHA what?" Andy.... " We are at the football game. The fire alarms are going off at the dorm." Michele... " HAHA, I'm at the mall." Late that evening Michele and Andy were watching a movie in her dorm room..... the alarm went off again. Andy... "Grab your shoes, keys, coat and the movie. We're out of here! Let's finish the movie at my place!" After the movie Michele went back to the dorm and went to bed. On Sunday morning....around 2am...guess what????? NO JOKE!!!!! AGAIN!!! As Michele and her roommate Tarin was going out the front door of the dorms a couple of their friends were just getting in for the night and was just driving in the driveway. "GET IN! QUICK!" her friend yelled. So Michele and Tarin got in and they parked the car. While the 596 other kids stood in the cold, Michele and her 3 friends sat in a warm car for a hour.

I've decided to keep track of the "FIRE" trucks coming to visit McMindes Hall...FHSU! Right now we are at lucky number 13. Will keep you all up to speed.

Where I'm needed

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." -Douglas Adams

Getting OLDer

"We all get heavier as we get older because there is a lot more information in our heads." -Vlade Divac, Basketball Player

Maid of Honor

On October 11 Jessica was the MAid of HonOR for her friend Lydia. The wedding was in Beloit. From the sounds of it.....FUN , Fun, FUN!!!

I Resign

This was in our local paper this week and I thought that everyone would get a kick out of it!!! This is for Jessica...........

-I am hereby officially tendering my resignation as an adult. I have decided that I would like to accept the responsibilities of an 8 year old again.
-I want to go to McDonald's and think that it's a four-star resturant.
-I want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make a sidewalk with rocks.
-I want to think M&M's are better than money, because you can eat them.
-I want to lie under a big oak tree and run a lemonade stand with my friends on a hot summer's day.
-I want to return to a time when life was simple, when all you knew were colors, multiplication tables, and nursery rhymes, but that didn't bother you, because you didn't know what you didn't know, and you didn't care. All you knew was to be happy because you were blissfully unaware of all the things that should make you worried or upset.
-I want to think the world is fair. That everyone is honest and good.
-I want to believe that anything is possible.
-I want to be oblivious to the complexities of life and be overly excited by the little things again.
-I want to live simple again. I don't want my day to consist of computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, how to survive more days in the month than there is money in the bank, doctor bills, gossip, illness and loss of loved ones.
-I want to believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, dreams, the imagination, mankind and making angels in the snow.
-So....... here's my checkbook and my car keys, my credit card bills and my 401K statements. I am officially resigning from adulthood.

Move In Day

On August 21, 2008 we took our "baby" to college. Michele started college at Fort Hays State University. She is running on their track team. What a day of excitement and terror. Excitement for Michele and TERROR for us. I wasn't sure what Roger and I were going to do with our time!!!

Game

"If life doesn't offer a game worth playing, then invent a new one." -Anthony J. D'Angelo

tWo dEgREeS

Surprise!!!!!! We got the phone call..... "Mom, you know when I said I wouldn't graduate for another year and a half. Ya.... I was wrong. I will walk in May." Jessica is going to graduate from Washburn University with TWO degrees on May 16, 2009. What a surprise for not only us but Jessica. She has worked so hard for this and has done it in a short time. You go girl!!!!! WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOU!!!!

"Risks must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing." - Leo F. Buscaglia

Life

" I do not believe in an afterlife, although I am bringing a change of underwear." - Wood Allen