Part III: A New Home

We finally closed on the house!  Here's a picture:

There's quite a bit of work that needs to be done.  Painting will go a long way in freshening it up.  The painting will be no easy task.  Everything needs to be painted including trim, doors and ceilings.  It will be great though once it is done.  The floors and countertops need to be updated but we will just tackle one project at a time.  The yard needs some work as well.  Fortunately, the backyard is already fenced for the dog.  The house sat empty for awhile so there are tons of spiders, roaches, wasps (nests) and other creepy crawlies .  I had a pest control company come out and spray for bugs already.  The house is empty because we still haven't received our household goods yet.  Tom has called and cannot get an answer as to when they will be able to deliver it.  We are being told that they cannot find a truck driver in Denver to drive it out to Missouri.  It sounds reasonable since Tom works with someone that just moved here too.  His household goods are already in town and in storage, but the moving company can't find anyone to load the truck and deliver it.  This is completely ridiculous to us because we live in a college town.  They can't find one college student that needs summer work?  Ugh.  Well, don't get me started on the closing process for the house either.  No one returns phone calls anymore.  Ha!  So much for the days when customer service was top priority for businesses.  

I guess eventually we will get our furniture.  It's just tough because we can't move into the house until we actually have what we need to live in it.  So, we are still staying in lodging.   Today, I managed to finish updating my resume and writing two more cover letters.  I applied for a few jobs this morning and took a keyboarding test at the college.  I just need to wait and see if anyone calls for an interview.  I'm not in a hurry to start work at the moment because once we get our furniture, I will be busy unpacking.  I'd like to finish getting us settled before I start full-time work anyway.

Here's a picture of the city limit sign for Warrensburg.  The speed limit really is 25 mph throughout the city unless otherwise posted.  I have to drive slower in town than I do on the base. 

Here's a couple of establishments we seem to visit often.  I would also post a photo of Walmart and the Verizon store, but those are just givens.  (Tommy loves to visit the Verizon store.  He will end up being on a first name basis with all the salesman.) 

We got to tour around a B-2 Spirit Stealth Bomber.  It's pretty cool.  It's even better to see it flying.  I'm going to post this, but be warned my husband will probably censor this photo and I will have to delete it.  Enjoy it while you can.  

O.k. I could not resist taking this photo.  Can you believe the elevation of the runway is 870?  Who cares, right?  Well, I just thought it was interesting since we just came from Cheyenne and Colorado with elevations fluctuating between 6200 and over 10,000 feet in elevation...870 seems silly.  LOL

The boys finally got their pool table.  It came with the house.  I understand the seller (husband) was pretty sad to part with it.

We are about to start our 4th of July weekend.  We have no big plans because we will be painting this weekend.  We will probably take a little time and go into Kansas City.  I'm anxious to take a tour of their chocolate factory and check out the Hallmark store.  I guess KC has the world headquarters for Hallmark.  I think it's something to visit.  We have to see the Transformers 3 movie too.  

We've been issued an Excessive Heat Warning for the weekend.  I guess they expect temperatures to reach the 100's with very high humidity.  Yuck!  We won't be spending anytime outside.  Ha!

Have a wonderful 4th of July everyone!!

Something Nice to Say

I'm in a mood.  If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all.

I will blog another day.

Part II: The Move, Vacation and Living in a Small Town again.

The Vacation Part II

The boys and I then headed to Colorado Springs, Colorado.   We had a stop in Gunnision for lunch and I noticed one of my tires was low on air.  About 90 minutes later, I had a patched tire and we were on the road again.  I made it to Laura's (my cousin) about 6:00 pm on June 13th.  We met my Auntie Dianna, cousin Doug and his kids.   We ate at Hu Hot Restaurant.  It was delicious and the first time we've been there.   We stayed until Thursday morning and then headed to Missouri.   Here are some pictures of our stay in the Springs:

The boys wanted to visit our old neighborhood and see their old school.

Laura took us to Green Mountain Falls, Colorado for breakfast.  We went to "The Pantry" and they have very large servings. 

Tommy ordered hot chocolate. 

Steven ordered the "Mother Lode pancake" and it really was huge.

The restaurant was right next to a little lake.

 Laura and  I took our picture next to a crooked tree.

Next, we visited Garden of the Gods.  You can see Pikes Peak in the background.

Balanced Rock.

 We made a quick visit to the Cadet Chapel at the Air Force Academy.

We left Colorado Springs on Thursday morning, June 16 and spent the night in Hays, Kansas.  It was a very nice Holiday Inn Express.   It had laundry service, a swimming pool, and breakfast was included the next morning.  The kids love staying in a hotel. 

We try to get the kids' picture in front of every new State sign.  Tommy was napping for this picture.  I tried twice to wake him up but you know how teenagers are.  LOL   Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of Missouri because I was in heavy traffic on the I-70 passing through Kansas City.  There is no safe place to stop for a photo op in the middle of heavy traffic.  We tried pulling over at the first Visitors Center in town but it was a huge disappointment because they didn't have a state sign.  Although, we gathered a number of brochures and a map of Missouri.

Tomorrow, I will blog about our arrival into our new hometown.  It's small.  Incredibly small.  There isn't anything here except a Walmart.   We also got a chance to see our almost new home.  We don't close on the house for another week.

Happy Father's Day!!

Here is a video the boys' made for their Papa on Father's Day. 

http://animoto.com/play/N50BwwFSojf8NvQnwVC6og

Part I: A Move, a Vacation and Living in a Small Town

The Move

It has been a long time since my last blog post.  There was so much happening to prepare for our move that I had no time or energy to blog during that time.

We moved during the last three weeks of school/work.  As you can imagine it was extremely hectic trying to work and have the kids wrap up their school year while trying to pack.  There were spring concerts, awards ceremonies and doctor's appointments to fit in during that time as well.   We were living in lodging during the last week or so of school.  The kids and I weren't thrilled with the move and didn't want to leave Cheyenne at all.  It was extremely painful for us and we will really miss our friends there. 

The Vacation
As soon as school fnished, we began our two week vacation through Colorado.   We left June 4th and arrived in Montrose, Colorado to stay with Auntie and Uncle.   We also visited our cousins.  Here are a few pictures of our great visit with family.

The boys and I on our first day of traveling.

We arrived in Montrose and Auntie and Uncle took us to Silverton, Colorado the next day.  We ate lunch at a restaurant with lots of wildlife on the walls. 

Good food.

The train from Durango.

Steven wanted a Coon (Kuhn) skin hat.

Wonderful views through Colorado (Western slope).

Hot springs in Ouray, Colorado.  We loved it so much we went back a couple of times. 

We went fishing (Grand Mesa, Colorado) and the boys caught rainbow trout.  Notice the snow in the picture.  We drove up there and my Uncle thought the lakes would be ready for fishing.  Most of the lakes were still frozen and there was a lot of snow still on the ground.  Fortunately, we found a lake that was thawed near the lodge where we had lunch. 

During our stay, Tommy became a teenager.  He traditionally makes his own cake.  So, here he is the night before preparing to bake.

The 13 year old!

Needless to say, we had an amazing time visiting with the family.  Auntie and Uncle made the most amazing dinners every night.   We had adobo, sweet and sour spareribs, grilled steak, and enchiladas, too.  We even went out to Japanese one night and the boys tried to use chopsticks.  My cousin, Sandra, made an amazing dinner one night with ham, scalloped potatoes and asparagus.   Here is a picture of the cousins all together.

We left Montrose for Colorado Springs on June 13th.  Our first stop was Gunnison, Colorado for lunch but it quickly became a flat tire repair.  I will continue blogging about our trip in the next post.

Funny Stuff

Last Saturday, Steven had a music competition.  I noticed his fingernails were much too long.  I got on him about it and asked if he was even going to be able to play his sax.  (laugh) Two days ago, he came home from school and told me his teacher clipped his fingernails.  Needless to say, it was mortifying to have his teacher notice these crazy long fingernails.   Not only did he notice them, he felt the need to actually clip them.  Now, I know his teacher because I worked at that school last year.  He's extremely nice and a wonderful teacher.   How lucky we are that Steven had him this year.

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week.  We've had lots of activities at my school.   We've had lunches, cookies, T-shirts, lanyards and business cards given to us this week.  Tomorrow, it's breakfast and I'm really looking forward to it.  It's been so much fun and a great week.  I went out shopping for Steven's teacher tonight.  I decided to get a few things to give him for Teacher Appreciation Week.  Ha!  I picked up nail clippers, a fingernail file and glittery nail polish.  I am sure he will think it is funny.  The nail polish is in case any of his female students need it.  Ha!  Steven thought it was funny too.  However, he asked if we could give him something besides the nail supplies.  LOL  We ended up picking up a Barnes and Noble gift card too.

In a final note, Steven scored a Superior rating at his competition.  Here are a few pics from the competition:

Steven getting ready...

Preparing to warm up.

Steven right after playing for the judge.

Random stuff:  Both my boys have hazel eyes.  Some days they look green.  :)

Poems

Here are a couple of Limerick's that Tommy wrote:

There was a person in south France.

He was always in a weird trance.

He tried to go out.

But he had bad gout.

So he did not even get the chance.

There once was a man from northern Maine.

He liked to chew on sugarcane.

But even through chalk.

He just could not talk.

So he always suffered from pain.

A Royal Week!

Did anyone get up and watch the Royal wedding?  I recorded it and intend to watch it this weekend.  I did catch the Royal couple on the balcony after their ceremony though.  I'm glad I caught some of it.  I really did think I'd get up and watch it, but I didn't.  Thank goodness for DVR!

We just got home from Steven's school.  It was the school carnival and the boys had a great time.  We never win anything from the raffle drawing and every year the boys are very disappointed.  Ha!  They did have a great time playing games and eating pizza though.  They also got to visit with their friends. 

Steven had track practice this week.  Earlier in the week, we were concerned he wouldn't be able to participate.  I checked his grades online and he had a "D" in social studies.  This seemed strange to me since he has turned in every assignment.  It caused a bit of panic in Steven and I.  We found out the next day that he has an "A" and his teacher hadn't finished grading all his papers.  Whew!  

Tommy had to write a Poetry book for English class this week too.  He had to write 16 different poems such as a Limerick, Parody, Haiku, Diamante, and a Cinquain just to name a few.  See previous blog post with the poems.

Steven is competing in the Music Festival tomorrow.  He is a bit nervous because he's been sick all week and hasn't practiced very much.  I think he will be fine though. 

I don't have any pictures to post for the week.  Hopefully, I will get a few and post them tomorrow. 
Enjoy your weekend!

Tommy's poems

Here are Tommy's poems again.  I couldn't get the last blog post to fit right.  I decided to try and repost just the poems.  I may add more later.  He doesn't seem to mind that I am sharing them. 

One is a Parody and the others are Diamante:

The itsy bitsy spider went up the water spout.

Down came the rain, and washed the spider out.

Up came the sun, and dried up all the rain,

And the itsy bitsy spider drank a cold beer on the beach

Life

Alive, energetic

Enjoying, living, being

People, humans--Corpses, bodies

Killing, dying, hurting

Lifeless, inanimate

Death

Happy

Fun, great

Playing, running, smiling

Good, nice--Bad, mean

Bullying, breaking, scowling

Horrible, hate

Angry

Easter 2011

I'm going to add a few Easter pictures so my Gramma can see them.  If you are on Facebook...sorry, you'll be seeing them again. 

We woke up to snow this  morning...

The boys before church.

I finally get a little Coca-Cola on Easter. 

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter!!


Wow!  It's hard to believe I've been away from Facebook and soda for more than six weeks.  It's Easter and Tommy and I made it through Lent.   I went grocery shopping  and bought soda and lots of chocolate (cookies, candy, donuts, etc.)  Hehehehe...

The Easter bunny barely went to bed and the boys were up ready for their egg hunt at 2:00 a.m.  Yes, you read that right.  They get really excited.  They've gone through their baskets and had their egg hunt.  Now, they are watching the movie, "Here Comes Peter Cottontail" while playing a new Lego game that the Easter bunny left them.   They colored eggs last night too.  Steven is also celebrating.  It is the first year he has ever found the most eggs AND the golden egg too.  His brother always beats him every year.  Hehehe...little brother is growing up.

Well, Tommy has had his first cup of hot chocolate for the night and I'm logged onto Facebook as well. 
 It's been about a week since my last blog post.  We've been super busy this week so I will share some family news and photos for the week.

Family news:

We went out and bought Tommy some new pants for Easter.  Poor kid.  He's been wearing 14 slim pants and they've been looking a little snug.  Well, ends up he's actually wearing 18 slims.  Geez...the kids growing so fast.

The boys had a Boy Scout Court of Honor and they received quite a few Merit Badges.  Steven received his patch/badge for Patrol Leader which I will have to sew on his shirt.   I think I may have a picture for that.   

Steven also had an awards assembly at his school.  I managed to take off work and see him receive awards in Art and Music.  Sorry, I don't have a picture to share.  I did take some pictures but Steven is so far away and there are so many other children...you'd never be able to find him in the photo.  LOL

Here they are coloring eggs...

...and here they are at 2 am. 

I asked them to take a quick photo with their chocolate bunnies.  I interrupted their Creationary game and movie.  :)

Happy Easter everyone!  I'm going to see if I can get some sleep.  The boys will have to take a nap later or we will be going to the last service in the morning.  haha!

Since Tommy gave up chocolate for Lent, we will feast on chocolate donuts for breakfast.   I will refrain from soda until I get back from church.  I think I will have a real Coca-Cola with lunch. 

A Wonderful Life...as long as I don't gain weight

Good day!

I've determined that my mood changes based on my weight.  If I gain a pound, I'm a grump...if I lose a pound, I'm quite content.  How shallow, right?  Ugh.  The truth is I feel better when I am at an appropriate weight.  It's much tougher as I get older to keep the pounds off.  The good news is I really don't starve myself to maintain my weight.  I simply try to get out more and exercise.  I've also determined that soda has no bearing on my weight.  I gave up soda for Lent and I haven't lost a pound.  Therefore, next week I will resume consuming soda guilt free! LOL 

More family news: 

We've had a very quiet weekend.  I did get out this morning for a walk in the 50-60 mph winds.  My husband has been updating his computer all weekend.  (I asked permission to blog that.)  Tommy has been writing a book report this weekend.  (I asked permission to blog that too.)  He read the book Blink which is about using your subconscious mind to make decisions.   He's actually presenting his book report in PowerPoint form.  He also brought home an awesome gym bag that he made in Home Ec class.  It's very cool and looks store bought.  He did a great job.  I need to take a picture and add it to this post.  Steven has been reading and playing most of the weekend.  Both the boys are attending an Eagle Court of Honor this afternoon for a fellow Scout. 

Here's a picture of Tommy's gym bag that he made in Home Ec class.  I'm glad I showed him how to sew last year when he made his reusable grocery bag for Earth Day in 6th grade.  Anyway, he was familiar with the sewing machine but now he knows all the sewing terms/vocabulary to go with his knowledge as well as all the parts of a sewing machine.  One day, he came home and asked if my sewing machine had an automatic bobbin winder.  I just thought that was funny.  Not something your typical 7th grade boy asks his Mom every day.  LOL  It does, by the way.

Steven keeps asking if anyone has tried answering his questions.  If anyone has the time, please attempt at some of them.  He will get a kick out of it.  :)  Please see the previous post.

Have a wonderful week!

Questions?

Here are some questions from everyday life that Steven came home from school with.  Don't look them up first.  Try to answer them on your own.

How many sides does a stop sign have?
Which hand does the Statue of Liberty hold the torch?
How many matches are in a matchbox?
How many sides on a pencil?
What rotation does a carousel turn?
On the Northern Hemisphere which way does water drain?
How many States are there (don't laugh some people don't know)?
What is the lowest whole number on your FM radio?
What side of the page are the even numbers on?
How many curves to a paperclip?
Which way does the slash on a NO SMOKING sign go?
On a tone phone, what two numbers do not have letters?

Good luck!  Please comment with any answers you may know or want to guess at.  Steven really wants to know if he can stump anyone...and if it makes you feel any better, I didn't answer them all correctly.  :)

Random stuff:  Did you notice the changes to my blog?  Yeah, I like pink.  :)  One more week until Easter.  I'm going to wake up and have a Diet Coke for breakfast.  LOL  Just kidding.  I will log on to Facebook though.

Boy Scouts-Patrol Leader

Steven was elected Patrol Leader tonight!  His patrol took a vote and he made Patrol Leader.  Yay!  He's very excited. 

Lost, Washed or Empty

Yesterday was a great day!  The work day went by fast...and then I got a text from Tommy. 

It said..."lost headphones. in pants?"  

This, of course, immediately caused a state of panic in me because I knew I had just washed a load of his pants the night before and hung them out to dry.  

I came home and checked his pants and sure enough...I found his headphones in a pocket.  So, I washed his Nike headphones that he got for Christmas.   When Tom came home, we plugged them into his phone to see if by some miracle they worked.  THEY DID!!  Now, I want to post a review on Amazon.com or anywhere that sells them and give them a 5 star rating.  These headphones can still work even atfter being submerged in water.  Although, we will try to avoid doing that again.  :)

Tommy had already started his homework when I came home.  (Nice!)   He tried to print up a report but couldn't because we were out of black ink.  Ugh.  He also informed me that he had lost his last favorite pencil for school.  I guess they just fall out of his pants pocket when he sits down.  His little brother told him to stop putting his pencils in his pocket.  (Good idea!)

Well, he had to print that report so they made a trip to Office Depot.  Tom bought a new ink cartridge and Tommy got some new pencils.  Crisis avoided...whew!

While they were gone, I made a pot of coffee.  Darn it!   I was out of creamer.  Tom went out again for me and bought some creamer.   My morning was saved and another crisis averted. Hehehehe...


Random Stuff: 

The boys had dentist appointments this morning.  They had their teeth cleaned.  No cavities!!   Yay!

Tonight, they have a Boy Scout meeting.  It's been a wet day all day.  Snow flurries, rain and hail.  Great day!

Censored

I've been censored!!  I'm not allowed to write what I want.  Bummer!!  I thought I was exercising discretion but apparently I must make a point to ask my subjects before blogging about them.  It sort of defeats the purpose of an online "family" scrapbook though.  I don't want to write only about myself because that is really boring. Oh well.  I guess there's Sachi...


Random stuff:   I took my blood pressure tonight.  It was 110/72. It must be due to a relaxing spring break because most of the time I am totally stressed.  Go figure. 

Mourning the end of Spring Break

Good evening,

Today was a lazy day.  We just cleaned up around the house, washed clothes and went grocery shopping to get ready for the week.  Tonight, Steven cried because spring break was over.  We only have 8 weeks left of school though.  It will go by fast.

The boys are in their rooms reading.  It's back to the homework routine too.  (Now, that makes me want to cry.)

I went for a walk today and got caught in the snow.  It actually hailed a little but fortunately it was small hail.  I ended up running the rest of the way home.  I felt good after my walk/dash though. 

Here's a picture since blogs are boring without pictures.  Steven got a haircut.

Rock Band!!

Good morning!


We are sad Papa has to go home already.  The week flew by much too quick and spring break is almost over.  Ugh.

Here's a few pictures and a video clip of the boys and Papa playing a little Rock Band.  Please excuse the fact Tommy is still in his pj's.  He's the only one that still needs to take a shower.

Steven is instructing Papa on guitar technique...

Playing...

Here's a small video clip...

Random stuff:  I'm so glad the government avoided a shutdown.  It would be awful for so many innocent citizens to suffer financially (no paychecks) because our Congressmen couldn't  pass the annual budget.  Something they should have done back in September when the House and Senate were controlled by the Democrats.  However, they all chose to take time to campaign instead of doing their jobs.  I'm annoyed with all of them.  As my husband said last night...vote 'em all out.  Grrrrr....