A very merry Christmas Eve

Just returned home from our niece Lisa's home. Great food, great company and a good time had by all. Drew and Kayley stayed up way later than usual and were troopers. Tomorrow will be a big day after Santa's stop tonight. Looking forward to that. Merry Christmas to all.

A video of a very giggly Kayley:



Random snaps of the week:

A great train ride

Last night we rode along with Megan and Andy and the kids to McCormick-Stillman Park where we hopped a train for a gorgeous light-filled ride through the park. The kids loved it. We had to wait in line for quite awhile but Drew and Kayley handled that very well. It was Drew's first time "out in public" since starting potty training and he did super. I would officially call him trained. Of course, he still wears a pull-up at bedtime. My grandkids are getting old!!!

Here's a video of the night and beautiful light display:

Christmas will soon be here

I am almost in shock to think that Christmas is less than a week away. I hope I will be ready! I am fixing "Thanksgiving" dinner for Christmas Day at the request of Mark. He is hungry for stuffing. :-) I love making that dinner but would be much happier if Matt were out here to enjoy it that day, as it is his favorite meal, too. We will have my niece Lisa and her sons here and nephew Aaron. Sharon and Arne cannot make it to AZ this Christmas so I am glad to have her children here with us that day to celebrate with family. When they still lived in AZ they always had all of us up to Terravita for the holidays so I am pleased that we can reciprocate with her children this year.

At the risk of being yelled at by my midwestern friends and family, the weather has just been superb for Mark's first week here. Lots of outdoor time with Drew and Kayley and yesterday we even golfed 18 holes. Just beautiful and so much fun!!! We were a bit rusty on the course but did not even mind that. We just enjoyed the day together. After golf we babysat for the kids so Megan and Andy could go to Megan's law firm party.

Today was designated for shopping! Kohl's has a 30% off everything deal so I cannot pass on that. :-) I also have to get my turkey today and probably everything else I need for that meal. Mark will be in heaven accompanying me on that journey. Ha ha!! Too bad there isn't a Home Depot close by...

Tonight Megan and Andy are taking the kids to McCormick-Stillman Park to see the Christmas lights so we are tagging along. They have a train ride there so you know who will be in ecstacy! Not sure if Santa will be there. We have been showing Drew the Christmas specials and he seems interested so I think he knows a little something about Santa this year. He will know a lot more come Christmas morning!

Time to get dressed for shopping! Have a great week and may there be NO snow in your forecast!



A video of Grandpa "reading" to Kayley



Outdoor playtime



Just plain NOISY!!

He's finally here!!!

Mark finally arrived in Phoenix late yesterday afternoon. It is wonderful to have him here after a long harvest season and an early midwest blizzard. He started out Thursday afternoon and drove to Matt's in Omaha. He spent the night at Matt's then began his long drive to Arizona on Friday morning. His Friday evening was spent in Tucumcari, NM. Mark said the roads were clear his entire 1500+ miles. Last year the mountain areas surrounding the valley were getting snow and he had to take a LONG southern route into Phoenix to avoid slippery mountain road conditions. This year he had much better luck and was able to come down the mountains via the shortest route. I cannot tell you how great it was when he finally walked through that door yesterday!

Megan and Andy invited us over last night for pork chops and Mark was able to finally see his grandchildren after almost 4 months. When he last saw them Kayley wasn't walking and we were still trying to get that bottle of formula down her. Now she is running all over the place and eating like a champ. He cannot get over how "old" Drew seemed and how tall he had grown. Drew didn't hesitate at all to run to Grandpa, seemed to remember him well. They talk on the phone a lot so that probably helped. Kayley took a few minutes to warm to her grandpa but then they became pals

He hopes to just have a relaxing day today...little does he know that he is going to help me put up Christmas lights on the townhouse. :-) Hope you all have a relaxing Sunday, too!




Kayley at my place on Friday and seeing Grandpa last night:

Snow, snow go away

Well, so much for Mark leaving from Omaha today for Phoenix. An "historic" blizzard (according to the news) hit Iowa today and my poor husband couldn't even get to Omaha. Thank goodness he is safe and sound at home. He would have been caught right in the middle of it. 14+ inches, horrendous winds and temps. Gosh, I do not miss that crappy weather at all. I am praying the roads will be clear enough by tomorrow afternoon for him to get to Matt's home in Omaha. He would then be able to leave Friday morning for WARM weather. Grandma and the kids are waiting for you!

The weather has been a bit on the unpleasant side here, too. High winds wreaked havoc on trees and power lines Monday night. That was probably a precursor to Iowa's weather on Tuesday and today.

Since it has been cool we have spent the majority of the time indoors. The video shows you how antsy everyone is to get back outside...


Pics of Drew talking to Grandpa Mark today...he even has grandpa's gestures! A picture of Kayley by the tree...she loves that tree!

More "Let's go bowling"

Drew decided he wanted to take Grandpa Butch bowling while he was visiting. Drew dearly loves to bowl, as does grandpa, so it was a fun evening for them. Kayley and I played in the arcade room. All the flashing lights made her think she was driving the cars and shooting the guns without spending a dime. That little trick will end soon enough!

Saturday was another very cool day here. I went with my hiking friends on a 6 mile trek and never took off my gloves which is most unusual after hiking that long. Usually I work up some heat units but the brisk breeze kept us all cool. I was also very cold last night when we went to Cave Creek. Megan had registered for the 5K night run there so Drew and I rode with to cheer for her. This was her first race and she did very well considering the route had major hills for the runners! She doesn't run on any hills so that was a different challenge for her. As she was off running and breaking a sweat, Drew and I froze our buns off. We did NOT dress appropriately for the temps. I could have used my Iowa ear muffs and winter coat. Glad this little front will be out of the valley in a few days. I don't like it! :-)

Mark should be in Phoenix this Thursday. Yay! We cannot wait to have him with us.

Below are some pics from the Thanksgiving week-end, my hike, the 5K race and a short video of the bowling night.

Baby, it's cold outside

I am scared to look out at my flowers and tomatoes this morning. It got dangerously close to freezing here overnight and I think I am going to regret not covering those plants. There are usually one to two nights per winter here that it gets close to freezing and I am afraid one of them happened last night. Darn my laziness!!

We had a good week here. Beautiful days, cool evenings. We can take a walk any time of the day now so we can be more flexible with that schedule. Kayley and Drew just love to be outdoors so if boredom sets in or they are getting antsy we simply head outside and they are content for a long time.

I was finally able to get the H1N1 vaccine yesterday. I was the only one in there to receive it so in and out in a matter of minutes. Much different than the long lines I see on TV news! Thank goodness...

Drew's mom is not going to be too happy with the following video. :-) It started out accidently and then we got carried away with the fun of "feeding" Sox.

Getting lazy (revised video)

I have a lot of videos and pics backing up on my camera. Need to get moving on those! I did find time tonight to put some photos into black and white...

Spring training....

Won't be long and the baseball teams return to the Valley. Time to practice.

Today I am thankful

My brother Larry and his family invited Mark and Matt to Thanksgiving Dinner in Rockwell City today. I am so thrilled they will not be feasting alone on the farm!! I love the farm, but it would be lonesome with just the two of them on this holiday. To make it even better, Larry is serving prime rib...why does that sound so much tastier than the turkey I am roasting?!?!!? I may have to alter my meal planning next year and pardon a turkey...

Here is some Thanksgiving week-end trivia. The Friday after Thanksgiving is the busiest day of the year for plumbers. hmmmm......I don't know if people are pouring drippings down the kitchen sink or if their "Uncle Buck" and his family are spending an inordinate amount of time in the bathrooms. Either way, I say keep the plunger handy! Also, I am hoping after reading this article I will not pig out today like usual! Globesity!!

Have a fantastic day!

Happy Thanksgiving

This is a short week for all you working people. I know that makes everyone very happy! I hope you have a wonderful holiday week-end with your family/friends. I had looked into flying back home over Thanksgiving but the fares were more than I wanted to pay! I figured I would save all that money since Mark will be driving out here in two weeks anyway. It would have been wonderful to see Matt, though. :-( Hopefully we can get him down to Phoenix again this year for Christmas.

I had a bunch of still pictures sitting on my camera so decided to put them to a little music:

Making a mess

All week long Drew was really in to making messes and piles. Not sure what was going on there! He piled everything he owned outdoors into a big heap...emptied his toy box and piled it all in the middle of the family room. Then Friday he went to his Thomas the train table and did the same thing! (See video below.) I will say he enjoyed doing it! Kayley just watched...and hopefully didn't learn. :-)

It has been super nice here all week long. I went hiking yesterday with four gals into a beautiful section of the McDowell mountains. Very secluded and gorgeous. We managed to get a bit lost and came out of the trail with our cars no where in sight. Seems we were about 1/2 mile south. We usually do NOT do that! The trails really meander there and it would be easy to become lost, so we did! Glad I wasn't alone!

Last night I went out to eat with Megan and family. Always nice not to cook! Well, don't know a thing so I will wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Cranky the crane

Any time Drew sees a crane from afar he calls it Cranky, from the Thomas the train stories. Yesterday I took him over to the town house where I live to show him one up close and personal. Megan and Andy decided it was time to put a new AC unit in the town house and that is what they use out here to install them...a crane! He enjoyed watching that ordeal!

Family night with Al and Peg Bundy!

Sorry for that title Megan and Andy! Every time I think of family bowling I think of "Married with Children". :-) ( Does anyone recall that sitcom???) The Thiel's were taking the kids bowling last night and I rode along. Drew had so much fun bowling and Kayley just had fun being there.

No rattlers or mt. lions on my hike today BUT

we did run into this big furry tarantula! Now, I know they are not "bad" spiders but after getting bitten twice by a brown recluse spider I do have some reservations about arachnids, especially when they are as BIG AS MY FIST! He was scurrying along in front of me on the trail and I do think I freaked a bit. The other ladies, long Arizonians, just laughed at me. Ha ha ha.... :-)
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Harvest is a "go" in Iowa!

Mark is steadily getting his corn harvested. My Iowa friends on Facebook have been talking about the great weather, wearing shorts and enjoying the sunshine. Mark says he's just thankful to be in the fields! I am happy for everyone there but especially glad that Mark is getting the corn out. The grand kids and grandma want that grandpa to get down to Phoenix as soon as possible! The weather is nice and we need to golf! :-)

Saturday I hiked with my new friends (actually Sharon's AZ friends who have let me join them after her move to Florida.) We did Pinnacle Peak which is a very popular trail on the week-ends but a good one to start for our first hike. We will hike as a group every Saturday until these gals head to cooler temps come spring. We see some beautiful Arizona countryside on these hikes and I am absolutely in heaven doing the trails!

I cannot believe it is almost Thanksgiving. I am not sure if it is the weather here or the fact that I hardly know what day of the week it is, let alone what month. It just doesn't seem like we should be having turkey and dressing once again! It is even harder to get into the Christmas spirit here. Jingle bells in the desert doesn't have that same....jingle! I wonder if I will EVER spend another white Christmas in Iowa? Sounds sad, but it isn't...because I won't. I just can't take the cold anymore! :-)

Andy had a tree die but he knew it probably would. It was originally planted by the landscapers too close to the pool and Andy didn't like the shade that it was providing and not allowing the water to warm up fast enough in the spring and fall. He tried transplanting it but it didn't quite make it. Drew became fixated on its "carcass" the past few days:

How to stay cool

Mark finally started combining corn yesterday. It is still very wet and he is driving through water is places but it is definitely time to get it out of the field. Here is wishing Iowans many days of sunshine ahead!

Kayley found the perfect way to stay cool while playing outdoors yesterday.

Hate to say it, but it is hot today!

After some really cool (cold!) temps last week, the thermometer is on the rise again. Supposed to be in the 90's all week, above normal for November. I do prefer this to those days we were in the 60's. Too hard to get Drew to put on jeans and a long sleeved shirt! :-)

Mark said the sun is finally shining in Iowa. The corn is still terribly wet but the guys are going to have to start combining eventually or they will have the worry of snow next. Such a year...

We spent the majority of yesterday outdoors. The video shows what we do outside. Have a great week everyone!

Happy Halloween

I had two visitors last night for Trick or Treat. One was dressed as a black cat and one was dressed as a normal toddler. Drew had a cute Thomas the Tank Engine costume to wear but he thought a white t-shirt and jeans were more comfortable for the occasion! Maybe next year! Grandma still gave him treats anyway. At least for pictures dad Andy donned the Thomas outfit so it didn't go completely to waste! :-)

Andy and Megan have season tickets to the AZ Cardinals games so I am going to watch the kids while they tailgate and cheer the team to victory. It looks like a nice day so we will probably spend a good portion of it outside enjoying the temps.

Hope everyone had a Happy Halloween.

One week later

Another week passed by so quickly that I haven't had time to update! Everything is good here. The weather is cooling down nicely into the 80's and it makes outdoor time possible all day long for the kids. That is good because they dearly love to be outside getting as dirty as possible. Today a front of some sort is moving through the valley and the high is only going to be 61. Brrr!!! No shorts today! Hope it moves out quickly and gets back to the 80's. :-)

Mark has had even more rain to complicate his harvest schedule. At least the beans are out. Sister Jan told me farmers near them in MN still have beans in the field and that they are beginning to swell and rot. How horrible for those people!

Monday night we met my nephew Erik and niece Lisa and her son Taylor for dinner at Peter Piper Pizza. It was great to see them and Drew and Kayley had fun. It is much nicer than Chuck E. Cheese and the pizza was actually good! We might have to haul grandpa to this place when he arrives.

Megan and I hiked Saturday morning and then they all came to my place to watch the very thrilling Iowa Hawkeye game against Michigan State. What a game! We were so very happy and were jumping and shouting at the last touch down and scared poor Kayley!

This week-end is Halloween so need to buy some candy. Last year the only one that stopped at my place was Drew, so I don't need to buy a lot of treats! Drew is supposed to go as Thomas the tank engine but he is balking at putting on the outfit. It is so cute so I hope he puts it on that night. I may, or may NOT, have pictures of him in it next week. :-)