About: Hannah

Even though I am unable to post pictures at this time, I should still make an effort of being interesting to all of you. I have decided that, since my dear sister spent the night last night, I will write thirteen things about Hannah. Here goes...
1) Hannah is 10 yrs. old.
2) She likes card games.
3) She is my only sister, one for whom I waited (and prayed for) for many years.
4) Hannah is good at math and likes tigers.
5) She needs hugs once in a while.
6) She loves babies and gets to hold them more often than I do (hmph).
7) When she grows up, Hannah would like to join the circus as a trapeze artist.
8) Hannah plays with Ben, when she wants.
9) She used to ride the tricycle, but now she is too big.
10) Hannah has lost almost all of her baby teeth.
11) I think Hannah is pretty.
12) She has blonde hair and blue eyes.
13) She doesn't like boys (except Adam, he's ok).

There you have it. Thirteen things about Hannah. Viewer discretion advised.

Hannah Sleeps Over

Today is a blustery day... reminds me of Piglet and Pooh. Mom and Dad were just over and now they are heading off into the wind and snow. My goodness, the snow storm came in a hurry. One moment it was clear and the next... whoosh! Snow. Anyway, Mom and Dad came to pick up Hannah because she spent the night last night. We girls had a good time together. Yesterday we went and had our hair cut by Auntie Kathy and returned bottles to Wegmans. We went home and played spit (a card game Hannah taught me), checked our blogs and ate a donut from Wegmans. When Adam came home from work we had fish fries for dinner, watched a little Olympics and played Apples to Apples. Hannah taught Adam how to play spit while I caught up on my Bible reading. When it came time for bed, I let Hannah use the new tooth brush I had bought for Adam and she and I climbed into bed, while Adam watched TV and fell asleep on the couch. It was some good girl time, although at times, I was sure Hannah was bored because it is so quiet at my house. I imagine that, even though there is only three kids back at home most of the time, that it is still pretty noisy or at least more to do. Too bad I don't have a coloring book, or we could've colored together. (Next time Hannah...) So, today Mom and Dad came to get her and they stayed for lunch. We had sausages with peppers, onions and mushrooms, chocolate milk and chips. Pretty tasty I think. Well, I shall go before I bore you too much. Hopefully, I will be able to post pictures soon. That will make blogging more exciting.

Penn-York Retreat

Hello everyone! We have returned from our retreat with the Juniors to Penn-York Camp in PA. We all had a great time even though we had no snow. The kids had to occupy themselves with something other than sledding. They played pool, football, capture the flag, basketball, and took walks on the different trails. But mostly played pool. A few of them even went "grassing"- the snowless version of sledding. We had a very light snowfall one morning, and several of the kids tried to make the best of it and go sledding. Not very successfully, but none-the-less, they did try! We had Bible study in the morning and in the evening, and meals three times a day. Those kids downed more sodas than I knew one could! I was glad that the soda machine was busted the first day, because they were hyper enough without soda in them! Tuesday afternoon each cabin made a mini movie/skit about 5 verses (whichever they wanted) from the Gospels. They enjoyed that and it was a good thing to do. My group did the 5 loaves and two fishes passage. They did such a good job, especially since we only had a half hour to come up with everything and could only have five props. I took many, many photos, some of which I will try to share with you except that the photo button on this post creator isn't working. I'm not sure what is wrong with it...

Camaras and Keys

Hello all! Good news on the camera. We returned the one we got before our honeymoon (because it wasn't working... it would work for 3-5 minutes and then freeze up) and bought a different one made by Kodak. See how we support the local economy? I like it so far (after 4 hrs) and I think we'll have fun using it this week. We also bought a picture card to use with it, which will encourage me to take more pictures more often. Goody-goody!
We were locked out of our house this evening when we came home from church. We traded vehichles with Mom and Dad because we are using their van to take kids to the retreat and I left my house keys on the key chain I gave Mom. She is going to come visit Louis while we're gone and she will need those keys. Adam had left his keys at home but we thought we could get in through the basement. But the door was locked or something so I had to run to our landlord's and ask him for the key. Luckily they don't go to bed real early as it was 9:00. But they didn't seem to mind and Mrs. Landlord said the banana bread I made for them was really good and that I was a good baker :) :) Anyway when I got the extra key and went back across the parking lot, Adam was climbing in the window. I guess he'd make a good bandit... breaking in and stuff. So we didn't really need the key unless Adam had decided to act civilized and turn from his bandit-practicing ways. Oh well, I still used the key to unlock the back door because I am quicker than Adam, even if he was already inside.
Well, I have finished packing for the evening and will have to finish in the morning after we are up and going for the day. So we shall be off tomorrow. I wish you all a good several days and shall return to blogging when I come home. God bless and good night!

Saddening News For You All

Well, I have two bits of sad news. The first is that, when I sat down to look up my blog, my pants caught on a little nail that is sticking in the computer desk, and now they have a little tear/hole in the knee. I am so sad.... One of my only two good pairs of jeans.
The second bit of sad news is that I will be leaving the blogging world for four days as I venture off to new places with the Junior group fom church. That is not sad for me, but sad for those of you who depend on reading my exciting new blogs every other day or so. But take heart! I shall return with good news and exciting tales of winter retreats... good Bible studies, sledding, a bunch of girls talking way too long into the night, cold feet, forgotten towels, and etc... Adam and I were both asked to go along with the Juniors as they go on their annual winter retreat. We will be having a good time I'm sure, and getting to know these kids will also be an adventure. I haven't ever really talked much to this age group lately. I worked with the teen group last year, but this I think will be a little different. Especially since none of them really know me either. So prayers will be appreciated and thoughts coveted. Hopefully I will come home with lots of fun picture to share... If I get a picture card for our camera and new batteries too. Hmmm... maybe I'll have to think about that...
Anyway, our wedding cake is kinda yummy. Adam thawed it out for Valentines Day. The cake is still pretty moist except for the outermost edges. I know we were supposed to wait for our first anniversary, but by then the cake would be past enjoying. So we eat it now, while we still have the chance to see how good of a cake maker Cheryl, Auntie Lori, and Gramanita are. We didn't taste the cake on our wedding day... other that what was smashed on our faces. So we take the liberty of choosing to eat while still enjoyable. I think there is two pieces left... we should eat them (and the rest of the leftovers in the fridge) before we go away tomorrow. Don't you think?
Well, I should be on my way.... I would like to stop by Mom and Dad's today. Hopefully I won't forget that I need to pick up my sleeping bag, a bag for traveling, and there was something else too... Oh, yes. I'm also borrowing Mom's boots. Can't forget those. I'd certainly be the one with cold feet then. Yikes...

Valentines Celebrations

Hello everyone! Today I worked for Peg again. She is sick. Poor Peg. I don't mind working... keeps me out of trouble :) Actually, I took next week off so I could go with the Juniors (the kids from church) on their winter retreat, so it's nice to have a few extra hours to fill in the lack. I'm also working tomorrow. Not waitressing, but clerking. That'll be something different for a change. After work I met Carissa for post lunch at a diner in Alton. We were celebrating Valentines together like we did last year when we didn't have anyone but each other. It's a little different this year because we both have Valentines of our own. But we called each other our "other" Valentine and held to tradition and celebrated together. This year I brought her a pink tipped rose and a small box of chocolate. Last year she had brought me a rose and a Valentine card, so I had to make up for my lack of gifting last year :) Speaking of Valentines, Adam and I had a nice evening together. We stayed home and Adam made an absolutely lovely dinner. He made a lobster tail and shrimp in a delicious cheesy sauce and pasta with red sauce. It was soooo yummy and it made my tummy happy. We had a nice first Valentines Day together. Well, enough of me. What about YOOOU?!?

Thirteen Things about the Man I Love

Since today is Thirteen Thursday day, I decided to write thirteen things about the man I love. This is a picture of some of his handi-work.
1) Adam was born in Buffalo, NY and he has one brother.
2) He owns his own business doing heating and air conditioning.
3) Adam doesn't like painting or raisins (when in foods)
4) He loves ambrosia salad.
5) He has found a new passion in cooking.
6) Adam loves and honors his parents.
7) He likes to kid around.
8) He also like kids.
9) Adam can often be found on roofs, in basements, or even in ceilings.
10) Adam loves Jesus and became a Christian when he was 17.
11) He likes to listen to WHAM and is excited about Glen Beck coming to television.
12) He likes the couch.
13) Someday, he wants to have kids- but not quite yet.

Louis the Lionhearted

Today is Wednesday and I'm home with Louis my cat. Perhaps I could tell everyone 13 things about Louis. 1) Louis was found wandering the streets in Greece. 2) We adopted Louis from Lollipop Farm. 3) He was a Christmas present from my husband, Adam. 4) He is black with a few white spots on his chest and tummy. 5) Louis is around 6 months old. 6) He likes to climb my back when I am brushing my hair. 7) He likes sitting in or on the edge of the bathtub. 8) Louis attacks my fuzzy white slippers with a vengeance! 9) He sleeps in the bed almost every night (or at least he used to). 10) He eats a lot! 11) Louis and Adam play almost every night when Adam comes home. 12) Louis thinks the basement in an exciting place to explore. 13) Louis loves guests!!!

Boring Escapades of Life

Ah, Mondays. You wake up tired, go back to work after the weekend, come home and try to figure out what to make for dinner because you didn't take anything out of the freezer, and think about how you have to back to work the next day.... We had a good weekend. I was called into work to clerk on Saturday. (We've been busy selling chocolate because of Valentine's day.) It was kinda nice working on Saturday again. It has to be the most exciting day to work, by far. It was real busy, candy and the restaurant. I even got the chance to wait on the counter because the other girls were so busy with their tables. It was fun. I'm clerking again this Saturday, but the candy business won't be quite so busy by then. In the evening, Adam and I went with his parents to the Sara Groves dinner concert at the Family Life Network. We all really enjoyed ourselves. Adam and I won a free CD because we were the newest newly weds. I guess it pays to be married :) Sunday, after church, we went out to breakfast/lunch with Jim and Dave (my brothers). We took them to Billy's Homestead in West Webster. That is our favorite place to eat. I think it was an eye opener for Jim and Dave 'cause they got to see Adam in his relaxed state. He blew his straw wrapper at Jim but it went past him into the next booth where it almost hit a little kid in the face! That was so funny... I burst out laughing! Sometimes he's just like a little kid, who really needs to have someone keep an eye on him! :) That night after evening service, we had some friends over to our house where we had waffles for supper and played Space Munchkin. That is a cool game our friend Tim intoduced us to. We've played it a few times before and we're getting pretty good. I like the other version of Munchkins better. It is of the knights and dragons time period. Anyway, enough of my boring escapades. Time for a cookie...

The Kiss I Never Would Forget

Today I rearranged my living room. It brought back memories of when I was young and Mom would rearrange the living room. Us kids would get in the way more than help. But it was fun. Joe and I would often crawl behind the couch and hide. One time, when crawling behind the couch behind Joe, he stuck his foot in my mouth. Yuck! It was so gross and I haven't forgiven him for it yet! But I guess it did get me back for making Dave kiss my foot. He used to chase me around trying to kiss me. That really made me mad. Who wants their big brother to kiss tham anyway? It's really nasty, especially when you're in 1st or 2nd grade. Anyway, one time Dave was wrestling me in the living room trying to place his lips on my cheek, and I stuck my foot up toward his head to push him away, and guess what he got... Yup, my foot on his lips. He was so mad, but I laughed and laughed. Dave had kissed my foot. I sure got him back for being such a mean big brother. I'll never forget it... the day I got one on Dave. I never could beat him at anything ever before... or again.

Washing Machine Blues

Well folks, my car is back home again and running like it was in the Olympics... (wasn't that a funny one?) I returned Jim's car to him last night and visit my grandparents a bit. They are so nice... I love them :)

We also have a new washing machine. Adam had been trying to fix the old one for the past week with no success, so he told our land lord about it the other day. The only hitch is, we did have two washing machines in the basement. The first one stopped spinning on the spin cycle, so the clothes would be soaking wet when I took them out (not very easy on the dryer). The second one used to belong to our landlords daughter. She was getting a new one so he put it in our basement to use when the old one went bad. Well, after about three - five weeks of using his daughters old machine, the belt started making an awful racket. I thought it was just that the belt needed replacing. But Adam opened it up and decided the brake was bad and wasn't allowing the tub to spin. It was agitating, just not doing the whole job. So I guess when he told our landlord, he said we'd have a new washing machine tomorrow (which is today). We both feel kinda bad... we didn't think they'd go out and buy a new washing machine. Most landlords don't even supply washing machine for their tenants. What should we do? Just sit by and be grateful for him having to spend a good chunk of money on a washing machine, when we had just gone through two of his already? Oh dear...

Everyone must think that I write very boring escapades of newlywed life. Washing machines, broken cars, sicknesses, etc, etc...

Thirteen Things About Baby Brother Ben

Today is thirteen things about Ben day... I shall start at thirteen.
13) Ben is my brother
12) he is twelve years old... even though I thought he was eleven
11) his pants always have holes in the knees
10) he drinks hot chocolate for fun
9) his favorite color is red!
8) he has four brothers and two sisters (I am one of his sisters)
7) he likes sledding and hates cookies
6) he plays piano
5) Ben is a silly goose
4) he plays with his sister only when he is bored
3) he would like to go to Africa to catch a lion
2) Ben's nickname is Bob
1) Ben reads his Bible

Car Trouble and More

My car is once again in the garage. And I don't mean my own garage. The battery light is on which means the alternater is bad. Dan, the fix-it-man, said he would look at it and maybe have somebody rebuild the bad parts, instead of buying a new one because of the age of my car and how many miles are on it. Adam and I were hoping it was just the battery, but after we replaced the battery yesterday, the light was still on. So the battery just wasn't recharging. Dan was afraid I wouldn't make it up to the shop, but said to come during the day when it was still light out so I wouldn't have to use headlights. I couldn't even use the heater because that might drain the battery. It was a cold drive to Courtesy Auto. Good thing it wasn't too far. Now I have to find something to drive to work tomorrow. Do you think my brother would loan me his old car? My in-laws need their truck 'cause their van's also in the shop. We just have too much car trouble.

Speaking of trouble, Louis has tapeworms. Yuck. Poor little guy, no wonder he is always so hungry. We need to have him dewormized. The vet in Williamson said it was $32 for a vet visit and then medicine $ on top of that. I called my parents vet in Sodus and they said it would be $7.20 for medicine, no vet examination needed. Sounds like a better deal to me. Just means I would need to drive to Sodus... Life just doesn't slow down, does it?

Good news... I got the book I ordered in the mail today! I ordered it off Amazon (good place to get books... cheaper than Borders and Barnes and Noble). It is a storybook by Robert McClosky. Has three whole stories in it! Blueberries for Sal, Lentil, and One Morning in Maine. I am so excited! Maybe Adam will let me read it to him... ok, maybe not. Anyway I bought it for a grand total of $10.43 ( including shipping) when one would've had to pay $19.99 for it at Borders-and that's not including tax. I am such a bargain hunter!!!

Fried Chicken!!!

Well, it is super bowl Sunday... Adam is watching TV and I already took my nap, so I'm blogging instead. I'm not much on football, although I do want Seattle to win. Go Seahawks!!! Anyway...

Last night, Adam and I made deep fried chicken wings. We are rather experimental. We heated up the oil in our big pan and even though the chicken wings were only half thawed we tried it anyway. Well, the first one was kinda exciting. First of all, there was too much oil in the pan, second, it was too hot, and third, frozen chicken makes for exciting action in hot oil!! Adam popped one little chicken leg in the pot and the oil practically exploded!!! It bubbled all over the stove, onto the fridge and the floor. Louis came running through and slipped through the oil on the floor and smoke started filling the house. I was like, "Adam, Adam! Put the lid on the oil! What do we do?!?" The lid didn't help, by the way. We had to open the front door and both back doors to let the smoke out. Needless to say we had to let the oil cool down a bit before we tried again. But in the end, Adam does make very tasty chicken wings... deep fried chicken wings. We'll just be a bit wiser on how to go about it next time :) By the way, if anyone knows how to clean off oil that is burned onto my nice new pan, give me some ideas please. It's all caked on there leaving a yellow residue around the outside of the pan. I know my Grandma is excellent at getting pans looking clean and shiny, but I'm not sure I have that much patience...

Isn't that rash?

Well, after going to the doctor for the second time in two weeks because of my rash, my doctor told me that I actually have/had mono, and people who have mono, when they take amoxicillin often brake out in a rash. So that is where my rash is from. My Mom told me that often mono can look just like strep, so that is where the confusion came from. So my sore throat went away and then I got a strange rash. I have now stopped taking the amoxicillin, and although it is still there, the rash is fading slightly. I felt rather silly going to work today with my face all blotchy and red, but most people thought I was just flushed. My boss told me I looked really hot, because my face was all red, and said to take off my sweater. I had to explain that it was just a rash from the medication I was taking. So glad it is finally fading...

Take a look at that rash!!!

Last night, when I was at my parents for dinner and Bible study, I broke out in this rash on my face. This morning when I woke up, Adam asked me what happened to my face. It had gotten worse overnight and has spread down my arms and legs and covers my back and shoulders. I look like one big freckle. Mom said maybe it is because I have been taking amoxicillin (because of my strep throat last week... one has to finish the whole bottle), and some people develope reactions to anti-biotics, even if they have taken them before. I hope it is as simple as that, because I don't want to go to work like this tomorrow. Everyone would ask me what happened to me. Besides, would you want to go to a restaurant and have your waitress covered with a strange unknown rash?... yikes

Anyway... other important news. We finally took down our Christmas tree this week. Well, Adam did anyway. We figured that a month after Christmas is a good time to take down our tree. When my friends came over I would ask them, "Do you like how we still celebrate Christmas?" So now our living room is back to normal. yup-yup