Friday Fill-in's

1. _Cool weather, pumpkin pies, and football are some of the things I'm most looking forward to in October.

2. Sometimes I __totally forget what I was doing, thinking, or saying!

3. __We will never be parents like ours were! and that's why there is a saying, "never say never"!

4. When I'm down, I _build a bridge and get over it.

5. __Home (josh would say in front of the computer) or at WalMart_ is where you'll find me most often.

6. A rainy day is good for _stew, crafts, and book reading_.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to _dinner alone with Josh (my dh)_, tomorrow my plans include __sending Ian to his first HS dance_ and Sunday, I want to __be cancelled from work!! so I can attend church!

Long Lost Friend

I am so excited!! After online searching off and on for the last 3.5 years, I have finally found my dearest best friend Christine "Red" Downing. Now, that isn't here current last name, just the one that is most notable to me. She'll probably kill me if she sees that I posted her undesirable nickname, but it's better than "beaner" (that would have been mine...I still use jenibean). We are planning on meeting up on Tuesday and now I can't wait!!
Life passes us by so quickly and we sometimes forget just how important people are to us until we can't see them. So much has happended in our lives and there are times I should have been there for her, but wasn't. Now I know she doesn't hold that against me, I just think I would have done her a lot of good to be in her life at that time. But God has a plan, and sometimes that means that I don't get to make the rules. Pooey. I want to . But we all know that friends come and go at times in our lives that God sees fit, times that we need them and they need us. Then we have to be reminded of how sweet those times were and go through life without that special person (or people). Lucky for us we are now, once again, going to rule the world together. Here's to a cold Dr. Pepper, cheetos and bean dip. I love you Christine!!!

On the Path to Healing...

Picked up Ian from school and went for his first post-op check since removing the "hardware" from his right collar bone. That would be the screw that was placed on June 13 (what an aweful day for surgery, friday at that). Things are moving along well and the incision is healing nicely. They replaced the steri-strips (no biggie) and he will have the stiches out next Friday. Dr. Fagleman doesn't like the stiches removed by anyone other than in his office; I can appreciate that. His motto "we put 'em in, we take 'em out".
Ian's only restriction now is no contact. That translates to "no football". But he can work out to his hearts content. Oh, and he can play golf. As if he has been doing that over the last year. Go figure.

Friday Fill-in's

And...here we go!
1. I enjoy ___the smell of rain.
2. __My grandparents and step dad Jim (all deceased)_ is something I wonder about often lately.
3. In your heart, you knew _I was the one_.
4. Take __Life__, add a little _Love_and struggle and you end up with _a strong marriage__.
5. Life has gifted me with _a fantastic family!
6. ___An empty calendar day__ is an instant vacation.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to _relaxing with the girls_, tomorrow my plans include _working my 12 hours_ and Sunday, I want to _Praise the Lord and attend my bible study_!

Finally, a bit of news on the Keara-front. We went back for a follow up visit with Dr. Meiser and found out some insightful information; it seems our dear daughter is allergic to everything except cockroaches. Hmm. Those nasty bugs that will outlive a nuclear attack. Figures. So much for an ant farm, no, ain't having a roach farm. Well, the bright side is that we can start to treat her in about 6 months. He likes his kiddos to be able to verbalize what their body is feeling in case she has a reaction to the shots. In the meantime, we will probably be finding a new home for our dear kitty Coral. She unfortunately is allergic to animals as well. Keara is beginning to sound like my dad? We can be grateful she does not have any respiratory reactions like asthma.

Ian will be getting the screw out of his shoulder next week. He is excited since this means he will be released to full contact sport by basketball season. Yea!! This time around will be much simpler with a very quick recovery. He just has to wait 4-6 weeks for the hole where the screw was to heal in. Everything else about his break and repair looks perfect. Praise God!

Well, not much else I can think of? No, nothing special was done for my birthday. My best neighbor did buy me the BEST cupcake ever and I savored the whole thing!! Love ya, Jen! Maybe I'll get my big wish come true this year, and don't bother asking what it is...Josh knows and that is all that matters.

Who Would Have Thought?

So here we are, in the middle of walmart (well hell, that right there says it all!) doing our grocery shopping when Ian decides he wants to look at shoes. "Umm...Okay, here?" (I swear that kid goes from one extreme to the other) We just talked about Journey's, now he wants to look in Wally World. Whatever. I look down the aisle and he begins running up and down the other end as if he has to find the bathroom QUICK. I'm thinking, "what the heck is he looking for?" That's when I hear it...."Hey mom!! I found them, and they fit!" to which I reply...."Let me see them". My next statement is "Are you kidding me!?" I so badly want to start laughing but he is being dead serious as I can tell by his expression of joy. All I can think of is, "wow, my life has come full circle and I am shopping with Grandpa Templar". Well, for those of you with teenagers you have probably seen the new fad. Yep, welcome back Mr. Rogers. Vans has officially brought back the slip on loafer. As Ian stood there, admiring his new found shoe, it took every ounce of refrain that I had to not point and laugh. I smiled graciously and said, "sure, for $9.97 I'd buy you two pair". Of course, as we round the bend knowing I have just made my 14 year old happy, he says "You know that guy Mr. Rogers? He used to wear these." Thanks Ian. You sure do know how to make me feel youthful. "You want to go look for a nice zip up sweater to go with those?"