AK update......

So, I'm finally taking the time to sit down and post something. Yes, it's been way too long since my last post and there is simply no excuse.
Pressing news....HAPPY BIRTHDAY F!!!!! I can't believe it's that time again. Wow, the time is just flying by. Another whole year. I still think of F as that little girl teetering around in the back yard with her wispy hair blowing in the wind, trying to keep up with SM. Why does that image come to mind so often when I think of F?
Things have been busy as usual, but at the same time nothing much has been going on. If you read SM's post you can see that life in her house is flying by with not nearly enough time to squeeze in everything.
We're busy getting ready for the rapidly approaching winter here in Alaska. Fall is here and won't be around much longer. The 'termination dust' in on the mountains. That's the verbiage we use when you see the snow on the mountains slowly (or rapidly) making its way down to us. It's a huge topic on the radio and everywhere you go. "Did you see the termination dust this morning? - - There's a lot more termination dust today." You kind of look at people like, have you never seen snow on the mountains before? WT_? This is Alaska for heavens sake. It snows in Alaska a LOT and for a LONG time. It just means you better get yourself in gear and get ready for it. Today we're going to winterize the camper and put the lawn chairs and in the storage shed and store the riding mower and move the 4-wheelers and position the snow blower in the garage for easy access, things like that. I had my studded tires mounted on the car yesterday and will get the oil changed one day this coming week. I've rounded up my gloves and snow pants and hats and boots, all the necessities for winter life. J is busy complaining about the chill in the air...it's Alaska for heavens sake. He keeps saying he loves living in Alaska, but then he hates the cold. I know, makes no sense. Nearly everyone does the same thing, but continue to live here. Me, I so love the snow. It's gorgeous. D and I have this thing about the snow and it makes SM a little crazy. SM doesn't want to hear about it. I can understand because she has to drive in it so much for the kids. Running them around everywhere with the nasty roads and the stupid drivers. The STUPID Alaska drivers - now that's what makes me absolutely crazy. You would think that people have never driven in snow and ice before. They act like maniacs. The need to slow down is completely foreign to some. Accidents abound and that just makes it harder to drive.
Without going into detail, things are very strained at work. Yes, I'm looking for a job, but it's not all that easy. We'll just wait and see what happens.
I'm so excited about becoming a great-aunt in May, 2008. This is incredible news and we're all so happy! An addition to our family is such a wonderful thing for all of us. We may not live close, but we're still a close family and share in each others good times (and bad). The time will fly by and before you know it our little F will be a Mom...how cool is that. She's going got make such a good Mom and L will be a good Dad, I'm sure.
OK, so I'm rambling. J just got off the phone, talking to his sister in GA so he wants to talk now. I'll post more later.
Love everyone and miss the Ohio family!

Ok, back to work...

Good morning all:
Yes, I know for most of you it's mid-to-late morning, but for some of us (Alaska) it 7:00 am. I'm up, have started pouring coffee in me, taken my shower and getting ready to pack. The limo service will be here at 11:30 for the drive into Anchorage to catch the plane. Thanks for the words of encouragement...I'll keep the "stiff upper lip" and keep on trudging along. Yes F, I know you know all too well the emotions I'm feeling right now and it ain't fun! Life goes on and we can only do so much. I know I'm right and that does help my own integrity and professionalism...hopefully it will help me keep my job....LOL! I'll keep you posted. Ok, time to turn this thing off so I cac pack it up! Hugs, kisses........
Love everyone.

Time to head up north again

Ok, it's Thursday morning and I have loads of stuff to do today because I'm scheduled to go back to the slope tomorrow. So what am I doing...sitting here browsing the blogs. I'm in a funk. I'm not looking forward to returning to the slope. Ok family, go ahead, "I told you so!" No, I do like my job up north, but without going into detail (another story for another day) my boss and I are not seeing eye to eye and I have this fear (not fright as in afraid, just a foreboding) that if I don't end up quitting I'm going to get fired. Yes, it's serious and I've never been in a situation like this before. Again, without going into detail - I'm the new person so someone is going to take the blame - take the fall - and it looks like it's going to be me, not her. Needless to say, I'm dreading the whole confrontation, but not much I can do about it. Yep, I'm seeking other employment but we all know that it's not easy to just miraculously find another job in 2 weeks. To compound my funk, I was watching the grankids last evening while SM was at class and sure enough D was crying - for a couple of reasons. But when she came over and curled up in my arms and said she didn't want me to go back to the slope for three weeks, that it was too long for me to be away and she would miss me so much...yep, that did it! The poor girl has no idea of anything else going on with my job right now, but that just did me in.
Oh well, I'll keep you all posted. Love everyone!

Hiya peeps....

Just poppin in to say "Hiya" and to let you know I am really going to try to do bettter posting on my blog... really I am. With pics of the kiddos & all :)
Love ya!

See, I told you so....

Yep, I'm back already! I mentioned in my previous post that I'd be on a posting bing and here I am.

I forgot to mention my latest obsession, thanks to SM and D. I'm into the whole Harry Potter thing. I'm on book 3 and loving it. When the Harry Potter craze started I had no interest at all. It was just another kids series. But then when the final book came out and SM and D were so excited I thought, what the heck, try to read a little of it. And that did me in. I need to do some housecleaning and start my algebra and do some grocery shopping - but no, I can here "The Prisoner of Azkaban" calling me. Hide the book, hide the book....don't look at the book, don't think about Harry Potter! Oh, and SM loaned me book 1 and 2 on VHS. Hmmmm, maybe I need to see if our old VHS still works in the grandkids room. I mean, that would be a form of housecleaning, right? If the old VHS machine doesn't work anymore I could toss it out and there you have it...housecleaning. But then I would have to hop in the car and run over to SM's house and use her VHS so I could watch the movies. Oh wow, more housecleaning because that would mean I would be getting those movies out of my house. So maybe, in a strange way, watching Harry Potter is a form of housecleaning. I knew I could make it work to my advantage. (Yes, the grandkids have "their room" at our house.)

Another day up north

Wooohooo, someone besides me posted to the blog! I was sooooo excited - until I read SA's other blog noting that this post was supposed to go over there. Doesn't matter, I was just excited to know that someone - anyone - still looks at this thing! Ok, so now I'm going to be on a posting spree.

Life is life - nothing really exciting. I'm mid-way thru my first official 2 week R&R. The time is flying by and before you know it next Friday will be here and I'll be up at the butt-crack of dawn (2:30 am) to get ready for the limo ride to the airport to I can make my flight back up to the slope. My flight leaves at 7:00 am, barring weather problems, so I have to be there 2 hours early - ok, that's 5:00 am - and it's a 1 hour trip to the airport so the limo arrives in my driveway at 4:00 am. For anyone who may not know me too well - I am NOT a morning person so I have to get up early to drag my sorry butt around the house trying to get ready. I can't stand the rushing around at the last minute - it just makes me tired and wanting to go back to bed.

The grandkids started school this week. For D is was not too big of a deal as she's in 4th grade now, but R has just started kindergarten. Huge deal for both R and Mom. He is so excited to be going to school. Day 2 and he was already telling SM that she didn't have to walk him to his room. Wonderful, but once he gets to his classroom there a things that need to be done before he starts socializing with his new friends. He's such a boy - why worry about hanging up your backpack or putting your lunch away or even taking off your coat? But the teachers say he's doing well. And having them both in school all day will hopefully give SM some precious time to work on her studies - sure, right! She's such a Mom - help out whenever the school needs last minute help - pick up her friends kids when a last minute emergency pops up - if things don't change she's not going to get any studying done when her peeps are busy at school.

On another note - there is a definite chill in the air in Alaska. Summer is winding down fast. The leaves haven't started turning colors yet, but give it another week or two and they'll be falling off the trees in bushels and then the snow won't be far behind. The State Fair started so we'll be heading over there this weekend to indulge in all the healthy food we can handle. The big difference is that at our fair we need to take jackets/sweaters/ and even some gloves if we're going to be staying late into the evening. It gets darn chilly. Back in Ohio we'd be sweating our armpits off!

Ok, enough for now. I have to dig into my fun new project for this fall - College Albegra. Class starts on Thursday and I want to try to get a headstart now - lord knows I'm going to need it. It's an online class which is a plus because with my job I can't attend classes when I'm on the slope. Wish me luck with this one - I'm sure going to need it. (Oh, did I mention how much I hate algebra - and algebra hates me right back!)

Lost in time.....

Okay so it's been awhile since the last post. So much has happened in that time that I don't know where to begin. SO.......let's start new.

I am now officially a mother-in-law. Our daughter got married this May. It was a beautiful wedding if I do say so myself. The weather was perfect, the dresses and tuxs were stunning (oh, that was the people in them), everything arrived on time the way it was supposed to be, the hall was beautiful, the food was good, we had great music, the photographer took great pictures, and fun was had by all. It was a very fast wedding week that's for sure. You almost wish you had a slow down button so you could enjoy that week longer. Or maybe even a replay button to do it all again. We did so many fun things and all of our family came home. I know that my husband & I will treasure the memories of that week forever. It was such a great week that I am having trouble coming up with the words that could even begin to explain it. I could go on and on.......but I won't. J & I are very happy to have L as part of our family. Even though he is a zucchini addict. :)

S& L added to their family within a couple of weeks after the wedding. NO.....not a baby........a puppy. Gracie is a very cute goldendoodle. They say she's pretty dumb but she's SO cute. She loves attention. You could pet her all night and it wouldn't be too much for her.

I got a new boss in February. He is a very laid back talker. No, I'm not kidding and S & L can verify this fact. He could possibly talk more than some people in our family. I said possibly. It's nice to work for someone that doesn't push or demand. However, he is very S...L...O...W....at making decisions which does rush me at the end of every week. I am a church secretary so there are bulletins for 3 services (all different) that need to be typed, printed and folded for Sunday morning. Not to mention his 2 bulletins. I'm actually getting used to not having the info before Thursday morning but it still makes me panic alittle. Other than this little kink, work is going pretty good.

So many other normal, day-to-day things have happened that I'm not going to write about them. Let's just say that life is good and I try to enjoy every day. Some days are better than others.....but there is at least one blessing in every day. Find that blessing and thank God for it. Tell your family how much you love them every day. (Yes, I try to talk to my daughter every day. L too.) I have found life easier to deal with by doing these things. Enjoy life, thank God for your blessings, and tell your friends and family you love them. It doesn't necessarily change the trials of life but it makes them alittle easier to handle. So to my family and friends.......I LOVE YOU and I'm off to enjoy another day!

Back at it in Alaska

So we've made it back to Alaska in one piece....too many tears to count, but we're in one piece. The trip was great and the wedding was beautiful. My brother and sister (in-law) did an incredible job (way too much work for two people) and everything was just perfect for Miss F's special day. As the saying goes, the bride was radient. The groom had stars ( and a tear or two) in his eyes as he saw her walking down the aisle. My brother (Father of the bride) held up much better than I expected. After all, this is his baby he is giving to another man....as much as he loves L (the groom), I know how hard it was for him and I can only love him more. He's such a good brother, great Dad, loving husband, and just all around fantastic man. His wife and daughter are blessed to have him in their lives. SA (mother of the bride) was gorgeous and you could see the love between the two of them as they watched their baby girl become a married woman. The happy couple is on honeymooning in Vegas and "Mom and Dad" are busy picking up the pieces - returning tuxes, returning wedding cake parts, returning tables and chairs, etc, etc, etc.
Amid the joyous moments we had to leave Ohio once again. Let me tell you..it doesn't get any easier. Good byes at the airport were the hardest, of course.
Well, the tears are starting again and I need to get busy with the laundry I've brought back with me and all the other real life stuff again. Vacations can only last so long.......
Love, hugs, and kisses to the Ohio family. I'll start saving my pennies again and make the trip back ASAP.

March 17,2007

Wow, it's been a long time since I've posted anything here....and so much has happened. The family is in Hawaii, I'm going to be starting a new job soon, Miss Femmie is getting married, etc., etc. Oh, and of course the famous WW update...I've officially hit my goal weight! Am I excited, you bet!
Ok, so I need to write more, but I've got to get to the tanning bed before they close for the evening.
More later...I promise. I just wish someone besides me would start posting again...hint, hint, hint!

Love everyone!

Ok, so what's up ....

Dang, the Red Jeep Club is started to feel like "my" blog! No one posts and no one bothers to read my posts. Am I really that boring? Am I just typing to practice typing? Is this a strike of some kind against the lovely, gorgeous, magnificent me? You're crushing my ego here. But does that dampen my urge to type some more....heck no!!!
Well, Miss D and I took our road trip (so we flew...big deal, it's still a road trip) to Fairbanks. And did we have a great time! North Pole, shopping, Santa's house, shopping, Chena Hot Springs, shopping, North Lights watching, shopping! Did I mention we did a little shopping? The girl has got it down. Boy, can she search for a bargain. 8 yrs old and she's a pro. Her Mama has taught her well. And laugh, we giggled about the silliest things until I thought we would cry. D was totally in awe of Santa's house. We had to go back a second time, she enjoyed it so much. Even got to see two of Santa's reindeer. the others were resting up for the big day later this month. Naturally, we did the girlie thing and were up late every night talking and talking about nothing in particular - just enjoying our time together. So anyway, we're back home and we're planning our next big adventure. Any ideas?
Weather update: the horrible winds died down and it was freezing cold, well below zero for several days, then it warmed up and the snow came. Ok, then it warmed up some more and the snow is melting and freezing at night and guess what..the damned wind is back again! Do you see a pattern here? I know, I know, it's Alaska.
Christmas shopping is almost done and will be in the mail soon. Just a couple more things to get for the kiddo's and then the wrapping begins.
Hope L is doing better. S, take care of the guy....he's only man and we all know they are big babies at heart.
Lates update: it's official; I've now lost 10.4#!!!!! I'm so excited. This ww thing really, truly does work.
Hope all is well with everyone in Ohio. Take care, be happy and keep in touch!
Love you all!

Counting down...

By this time tomorrow night D and I will be settling down in our hotel room in Fairbanks! Yep, she and I are going on our first (of many) road trips! Just us two girls.

Hello....?

I know how busy everyone must be, but no postings but me? Come on, just a short hello or something!
Anyway, not too much happening around here. Got the new cell phone working fine now. Went wireless with the internet network...that was fun (just a hint of sarcasm). It was a struggle but it's fine now, more or less. It is nice to be able to set up the laptop at the breakfast bar or snuggled up on the sofa.
WW is going well. I've lost a total of 6.6# so far! Hooray for me! Slowly but surely!
Winter is getting closer, the snow is inching its way down the mountains and we're expecting to see it covering the lawns any day. Please don't say anything S....she's not exactly excited about it. D and I talk about it all the time and we're excited...waiting and waiting. She so loves when it snows! R likes the snow but isn't at all happy about the cold.
Registration for next semester starts on Monday (10/23). Oh joy (another hint of sarcasm).
Guess that's about it for now. Miss the Ohio family. I haven't seen any messages about your flight plans to Alaska? I know....you holding out and going to surprise us, right?
Love ya!!!!

What's my sign?

Ok, so most of you know I'm remote control challenged. I readily admit this piece of information. But beyond that I can figure out most of the technology thrown at us these days. Well, I came up against a good one yesterday. Here's what happened:
Yesterday I purchased a new cell phone - Nokia 6103 - very nice and it's Bluetooth compatible. The Bluetooth issue is what started the whole thing. K had given me a Bluetooth wireless headset. Hey, it was free so there shouldn't be a problem purchasing a new phone. We're going to have to go with the whole GSM thing in the near future anyway.
$180 later (not counting the $50 rebate I'll be getting in the mail) I walk out of the CellOne store a happy little camper with extra chargers and a case and everything. Not at all excited at the prospect of having to manually enter my entire address book (now known as contacts). But still, kind of upbeat about the whole camera phone and all that.
I spend the next 4 (yes....4) hours trying to set up this crazy phone. New settings, new sounds, new functions and all those blasted phone numbers...4 hours!
Anyway, I get to the final step of setting the passwords (pin codes) to lock the keys and whatnot. I'm going thru the process and somehow (lord only knows) I've managed to lock the entire thing. The exact message is "SIM Card Rejected". What the hell does that mean? I've called CellOne and although they were very nice about it, the only option I have at this point is to go back to the CellOne store today. Hopefully they will take pity on me and just give me a new SIM card since it's brand new. But they may get nasty and say that I've fried the damned thing and will have to purchase a new SIM card. I was only trying to lock the keypad so in case it was stolen or something noone else could use it. But no, I've managed to screw the whole thing up.
Today I'll be at the CellOne store when the doors open at noon. And what am I doing the rest of the day....entering phone numbers all over again.
Ok, so I don't see any pity coming from anyone...oh well!

Still losing.....slowly

WW update...... o.2# tonight. So that's not quite one stick of butter. Yuck, the thought...glad it's gone! I didn't gain it all in one week so I can't expect to lose it all in one week. Coming off slowly but surely.

Femmie's Day!

Happy Birthday Femmie! We love you and miss you! Enjoy your special day.....I'll be thinking of you stinker!

Is the suspense killin' ya?

I know you're all just dying to know so here's a Weight Watcher's update....
Week 1 - 1.8# loss
Week 2 - 1.2# loss
Week 3 - .4# loss
Ok, so it looks like I'm slowing down ( or losing ground?). But when you add it up that's a total of 3.4# in 3 weeks. Not too bad! I'm sticking to it and going to stay on the plan! Positive thoughts, positive thoughts.....

How happy can a pound be?

Ok, so this may not be exciting to some, but I went to WW tonight and 1.8 # lighter!!!!!! Wooohoooo! I know, I know, it doesn't sound like much but it is a beginning!

Hello...is this my blog now?

Am I the only one using this blog now? That's ok, I'll post and hopefully someone will read...hate to type for nothing! Quick update...as most of you know I've been doing the job search thing for quite some time. Not flooding the market with resumes, but looking and sending out resumes if something looks good, really good. Well, finally a good one came along and I had the interviews and WOW...they offered me the job (on 8/25). It was a good offer and I was excited.
On Saturday, (8/26) we go car shopping. I've been having trouble with my PT Cruiser not starting. I've had it to the repair shop and they can't find anything wrong with it. Their advise...next time it happens, don't jumpstart it, don't do anything, just have it towed in. If I bring it in AFTER we get it started then they can't find out what's wrong with it. Now that makes sense...wait until I'm stranded and then we'll help. I live a flippin' hour from town! So once I start for home or for work or for anywhere I can't stop and turn my car off..it might not start again. Not my idea of fun when living in Alaska. So anyway, I traded it in on a Kia Amante. GREAT car. I love it. And I got a great deal on the Cruiser.
So I go in to work on the following Monday (8/28) and turn in my letter of resignation. My last day will be 9/8. My boss, who most of you know, I love dearly, just told me congratulations. Without going into all the boring details, the credit union made me a really great counter-offer and I've accepted. So I'm staying after all. More money, a good promotion...I'll stay.
And my motorcycle (ok, scooter)...I love it. After an incredible amount of frustration and anger, it finally arrived the early part of August. Of course that's about the time the rain really hit up here. Major rain, major flooding! So we brought it home and it sat nice and dry in the garage for a couple of weeks. But now....oh yeah...I'm riding it and loving it! No shifting on this baby! Just turn the throttle and pick up your feet! Tell my baby brother he needs to get his butt up here just so he can ride this one. 600 cc's and boy does it move! It'll cruise at 65 with no problem. I know, I know, it's not a Harley....but it sure is fun.
I bit the bullet and have officially started weight watchers (WW). I can't stand the excess weight any longer. J and I are starting to eat better...make better choices. Pray this weight comes off. My closet is bursting with clothes that don't fit.
Saving the best for last....the grandkids! I'm giving D lessons on driving my 4-wheeler. I'm on the back with her, but she's doing the driving. She's doing such a good job. But when did she get big enough to handle this stuff? R rides in front of me when it's his turn, but that's getting a bit difficult. He's gotten so big that I'm struggling to reach around him to the handlebars. And he just keeps saying, " Go faster Grandma!". Gotta love that boy...the need for speed! Yep, he's my grandson alright. (Don't tell anyone...they all think I'm a slow driver, right?)
Fall is here and J is busy getting things ready for winter. Remember, fall in Alaska is maybe a week....2 weeks if we get lucky. I won't type the "s" word, but it's just around the corner. We have a little termination dust on the peak of some of the mountains. Don't tell S.....she will cry. But it's ok to tell D...she loves it!
Ok, enough for now. It's 2:25 am and I need to get some sleep. Hopefully I'll be able to sleep. This is one of those nights...tired but can't fall asleep.
I'll try to post some pics. S is telling me to click the symbol of the picture...I have no picture symbol. I promise to get some in the snail mail too. Now, if I could just find the darned picture symbol....before S has to point it out and remind my how old I'm getting...LOL.
Love to Ohio...we miss you!

Prayers please

If everyone could please just take a moment to include my boss (F remembers him) in your prayers. He's in the hospital again. They are activating his pacemaker, but things aren't looking too good for him right now. More is wrong than just his heart and he can sure use all our help. Thanks!

3-day weekend

Finally, 3 full days off...all in a row. This is a major treat. And to start off the fun, I'm going to have a sleepover with D & R. S & K are going on a "date" and I'm taking care of the kiddos. Pray for some sunshine this weekend in Alaska!