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He drives now!

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Wev'e been hit

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California dust storm

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California girl

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Its rainin

Yea! we finally have electric! Now I can explain about the photos in NM and CA. My Sis is with our trucker Sis on a run to California. She left during the storm on Sunday. We met the truck in Carefree and they will be back sometime next week. She is having a blast, loving it, I can tell by her calls home. Stay tuned for more pictures from her cell phone. She isn't saying much though.

Our electric was out from Sunday afternoon and was on when we got home Tuesday evening.  We had a tree down across the power lines on the driveway. We had to clean out the fridge and freezer and take it to the shop. We has a couple of nice quiet evenings by lamp light here but we didn't stay up long, nothing to do but crank the emergency radio and look for any news. The lights are still out at Bea's, thank God for the nice weather. Not hot nor cold, just right. They were giving away food at the firehouse and the J C's for people that didn't have any.

Lois got a tree through her roof over Timmy's room and a hole above the living room. Nobody was hurt but they are praying for no rain until it can be fixed. Mom and Dad have no electricty but they have a generator.

Gas is $4.30 a gal. here! Yikes!

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California!

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Arizona

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In arazona

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Lava rocks from nm

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St lewis mo

Hurricane force winds

This is two girls practically scared out of their wits by the catagory one (75 MPH) winds, and praying hard that we get home in one piece.

Mad as a Hatter

This is Terry, mad and grumbling about the the photo below.

Ouch!

This happened 2 minutes after the photo below. A walnut, propelled by the high winds hit the windshield.

Windy Day!

This was right after church on the way home from Bea's.

She was resting her head on the pup like a pillow.

This baby boy does not go hungry, he has plenty to choose from.

All together now, Ahhhhhhhh

New pups (cell phone pic)

Here is a picture of the new babies

We had a beautiful day Saturday, didn't make much money but it was a nice day. We sold 3-4 signs and one bench. We would have sold more benches but there was so many people there that they were walking up to a half mile from their parked cars and they couldn't get in to pick up a bench. They were too heavy to carry out so we couldn't make the sale. We could only refer them to our shop and hope they come back. We got orders for a few signs so I will be busy for the next 2 weeks. I think they said there was about 4-5 thousand people there. I did give out all my cards and had to handwrite a few so it was a good day anyway. My dog Becka was due to have puppies that weekend but I thought it would be about Sunday or Monday. When I got up at 6am on Saturday I noticed she was about to deliver. I grabbed a laundry basket and a blanket and in 5 minutes it was coming out. I had to help because it was coming feet first and that is not the usual way. I pulled on it a little and it popped out. She only had the one and Mom and pup are fine.

Lois, Timmy wants to check out the web page Jurassic Fight Club so I said I would find it and send him a link. If you click on this he can look around, see pictures and play a little game there. Use it as a reward for getting a page of home work done or something like that.

Goodbye Baby Girl

Dr. vet man checked her out. She had a hole in the lip under her nose that went through the upper pallet and into the nasal passages. He said she would probably get pneumonia by accidentally inhaling milk into the lungs. So we said goodbye to our baby girl.

I didn't get to check out the puppies real good before I had to leave for work Monday morning and Sarah called me later in the day and said there was something wrong with one of the puppies. It sounds like what she was describing was was a cleft pallet but not being able to see it I wasn't sure. I did some research on the Internet and it says that if that is the problem, the puppy cannot get suction and can't eat. They don't recommend trying to save them, it will need surgery and a lot of attention. Sarah called me tonight and said that it looks like the pup is losing weight, now I am worried. I get off work at 9 in the morning and will be going home to check on it then.

Just messing with Sis's cell phone. He used to fit inside that coffee cup.

Tinkerbell started labor about 12 last night. I stayed up until almost 3 am and she had two puppies by then. I decided to go to bed and let Sis sit up and do the worrying. I got up at 5:30 to check on them and Sarah was asleep in the dog pen and Tinkerbell had 5 of the cutest little babies you have ever seen! Mom and babies are fine but Sarah is a little sleepy. I wanted to get pictures to share with you but I had to go to work and wont be home again until Wednesday evening. I will take some then.

Hey, where is my caffeine ? I wondered why I was so sleepy about 5 pm tonight. I see now, Mom bought decaffeinated coffee! Now I will have to go to bed early tonight.

Below is my MySpace blog for tonight.

You should hear Sis squeal when she feels a puppy kicking in Mommie's belly, and boy, do they kick! You would think she has never had puppies around before. Even after about 18 litters of puppies, she still feels like a new mommie herself. I guess it is because it is her dog this time.

She has spent 3 days washing down and cleaning out the pool so we can fold it up and put it away for the winter. I told her to notice how hard she is working to take care of her pool. It makes a difference how you take care of your things when you have to sacrifice and save to buy it. If we had bought that pool for her, I doubt she would be taking such good care of it.

Taken outside Bea's kitchen window


Below is a copy of what I posted on my blog at MySpace. Jeanie told me that you have to sign up for a page to see my photos that I post there. She signed up a while ago to see one of her friends pictures so I accepted her as a friend and she can see my photos. I like to post at MySpace because some of my 'friends' are Jeana, Andrea, Rachel, Jeanie, David, Greg, Jessica, and I even found Ronnie, Frans son on there. Oh, by the way, he is 24, married with 2 kids now. All my 'friends' can see what I posted and I can see everything new on their pages, like blogs, pictures, bullitens and who they have for 'friends'. If you would like, or if you don't know how, I can sign you up and tell you what your password is.


Finally, a moment to sit down. The dishes are done, the animals (2 legged and 4 legged) are fed and the fire is banked. Now I get a moment to myself.
After church this morning we went home and changed out of our "Sunday clothes" and fixed leftovers for lunch then went to the shop. Sis and her friend helped paint signs while I cut out some more. I will post some photos of the signs when I get them varnished. It was really hot today but we made it through. Had Hamburger Helper and a salad for supper. On Sunday evenings we usually share the job of doing the dishes. I am really thankful for the help. Dad does the silverware, I do the glasses, cups and plates and Sis finishes up with the pots and pans. Works great for us.

We decided the drain the pool tonight. It really got too far gone to swim in it anymore. It would have to be drained and refilled to be able to swim anymore this year and we didn't want to do that this late in the year so we'll just put it away for this year. It sure was nice the few times I got to get in it, will be looking forward to putting it up again next year.

Andrea commented on some photos that I uploaded to my MySpace page. Look for the 'View my pics' button in the first dark red box.

I'm gonna feed this girl some coffee more often! She cleaned up the laundry room and if anybody knows, that laundry room is always so bad you just don't want to go in there. It looks great now. She mopped my kitchen floor! Say bye-bye to the messy spots in front of the refrigerator, the spill that has been by the table for the last 3 weeks and the puppy pee that I didn't get cleaned up in time. Wait, thats not all! She wiped down all my white kitchen cabinets, wiped the shelf under the table and went right from there to clean the bathtub. I'm going to kiss that kid!

Here is one of the patterns I am doing for a sign this week. It seems to be a popular sign.

For todays blog post you must visit my MySpace page and find the latest blog and click on it.

Sarah sent me this picture from her cell phone to mine. She took it outside where she works. I thought it was beautiful. It is my desktop background now. Not bad for a cell phone.

It was a beautiful Sunday morning down by the Ohio River! Little sister and big (she thinks) daughter

Sister, daughter and nephew

Oldest and youngest sister

I posted these from Dad's high speed internet but this is all I got done before Terry was there to pick me up. Your little boy is growing up, Lois.

Lets try this again, I like these expressions. You can tell my baby is a Daddy's girl!

That is one hairy baby!

I have been meaning for so long to get back on here but............ Oh well, no excuses, I'll just do it.
The last couple of weeks we have been working hard getting ready for the show at Riverfest at Leavenworth. I was thinking that after the show we would be able to slow down and mellow out a little but, I think not. I got so many orders for signs that the next few weeks will be a bit hectic again. Well not "so many" orders, I think it was 10 or 11 but some of them want more then one sign. I only sold 4 signs but Terry took about 15 benches in different styles and we sold 5 of those I think. We brought home $440 with another $135 coming when they pick up their orders. That just paid the deposit on the insurance for the shop but at least it is paid now. I made a bunch of business cards and a lot of them went out so we may get a few more phone calls. Someone that bought one of the wide benches is calling it a coffee table and called and wanted to know if Terry could make them a couple of end tables to match it. Some one came in the shop and bought 3 benches yesterday for $85. They said they would be back for more. A lady left a message on the phone yesterday ordering two. She doesn't want them put together, she wants to haul them in the trunk of the car. Terry makes the peices, includes the hardware and wraps it all in the plastic wrap and they put them together when they get home.
Sis went with us and took one of her friends and we didn't see much of her all day. It was down by the Ohio river so their was a lot of exploring to do. David, Terry's helper went too, to help us haul stuff, load and unload. We took our new little pup, Mickey so he will get some socialization but that went a little overboard, I think. You know how David likes the girls? Well he found our that that cute little pup was a perfect Chick magnet. He would take the pup and disappear for hours and every time you would see him, he always had a group of girls around him ohhhing and ahhhing over the cute little doggie. He was in Heaven. I had to take the poor baby from him and tell him to leave it alone long enough for it to get some rest, some sleep. It was really hot that day and that baby was tired when he got home but by the next day he was ready to go again. It was really hot too. We had some shade where we were set up but some people only had the shade from their tents. I ventured out to look around a little and I was feeling sorry for those poor folks. The festival was not as big as I thought it would be, maybe 20 to 25 booths and Terry thinks we were the ones that probably made the most money that day. Everybody loved out stuff but in these days and times they are hard to seperate from their money. Terry was hoping to make about $1000 that day but that was not to be, it was mostly local folks there but we did get the word out about what we were doing.
Well that is what has been keeping us busy this summer. Can you beleive that the summer is just about over? Here it is almost August and time to start collecting wood for the winter. NOOOOO, I don't want it to be over. I'm not ready yet but that is not going to stop it.

Well, it is definitely summertime. Remember wishing for this time back when it was 35 degrees outside? I like this much better and am not looking forward to that again. Sis saved her money this spring and managed to get enough to buy her a swimming pool. It is 13 ft. across and about 4 ft deep. She spends a lot of time in it and is brown as a berry now. I've been in it once and it really felt good after a hot day at the shop, working in the sun.
I just made a pound cake, it is in the oven and is smelling really good. I found some almond paste at the salvage store and looked up some recipes on the internet. I choose the pound cake recipe and am waiting anxiously to try it. Lois and Timmy are here at the park, fishing and they are supposed to come back when it is done to try a piece.

I have a new baby sleeping here beside me on the couch. Haven't named him yet, haven't known him long enough to pick one out. He is my payment for the use of my male dog. He is only 1 lb. and is really cute. I didn't know if I was actually going to get him because the mortality rate for puppies where he came from is very high. He was one of only two and his sister died. Irene became quit attached to him and made me promise not to sell him later of if I did, to sell him back to her. He looks just like the little pup I raised on a bottle last year. I saw that dog this week, he is about 5 lbs. and very hyper. He turned silver like his daddy.

We are signed up to set up a booth at the Leavenworth Riverfest the 26th of July. I have been busy trying to get enough signs made to take along. I want Terry to make some of his nice benches and a table or two. I don't plan on getting rich but it might be fun. It has really kept me away from home and at the shop a lot. I counted it up the other day and I am at home only 24 hours a week, not counting sleeping and if I go to bed at 12am. Maybe when this festival is over it will get better. I hope so. Sis is helping me keep the house livable and I really appreciate it.

I love it when Sis plays her music LOUD. Not because I like the music, I really don't enjoy that part but there is a lot to love about the moment. Think of the alternative, if for some reason she was not with us, how much would I wish that she were there to turn up the wild music she loves? What I love is that she is there, with us, singing, dancing, laughing and having a great time. The music is loud, sometimes crazy and not what I would choose but she wants to share it with me, dance with me, laugh with me. The alternative? She could be the kind of teenager you hear so much about, sullen, untalkative, secretative and moody. She could be glued to her room, alone and dressed in black, talking on the phone to friends that I don't know. Maybe she does always leave her dirty dishes in the living room, forget to do her chores, leave her wet clothes laying on my bed or not get her school done on time, but when she gives me that unexpected hug or tells me I'm the BEST Mom, it is all forgiven. When I hear her loud music and see her in the kitchen with me, dancing, singing, laughing and just wanting to spend time with me I want it to last forever! You go girl, be yourself! Never let me try to change you into what I think you should be, always be who you really are, who God made you to be!