Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Leap Year! UM Spring Break!

It has been so nice having Mary home this week. It is even better that my scheduled week off at work coincided with it.  We have done a lot and have fun things to look forward to:
  • Friday I was cancelled on a snow day and was able to go out to dinner with Mary and the family at Pizza Hut.  
  • Saturday I had to work, but had some fun morning time with Mary and Matthew.  Jeff was at a conference,  Matthew left around noon for his show choir gig and I took Mary to Brandon's on the way to work. I finally worked in the nursery, and had a nice evening.
  • Sunday was a work day for me too, so after the sermon at church I slept until 4:30 and then we all ate at Applebee's for dinner before I headed out to work.  I was the back-up nursery nurse and had another good night.  
  • Monday was a catch up on sleep day and then watched some TV. Jeff worked on taxes and then I worked on FAFSA, so we could file before the first of March. Mary and Matthew's are done, and we are working on Sarah's now.  Thank goodness February had an extra day! Happy Leap Year!
  • Tuesday I had to be brave.  I had to go to the dentist and have my baby tooth fixed.   It sure is easier than having it pulled and who knows what else.  Anyway, after lots of anxiety and questions, I had the filling and it all went well.  Unfortunately, they could only fill one of the three needed. The other two are small and one is actually a replacement filling. Of course we voted and then had little Jack over for about six hours.  Mary and I made dinner for the Cory's last night. Jim had carpal tunnel surgery.  He is doing well and they appreciated it very much. Chime rehearsal went well, they sure have grown into a really good group.
  • Today was another Jack day with lots of smiles and laughs.  Mary had been helping Matthew with his portfolio and it is looking really nice.  He still has lots to do before next week.  Just need to keep plugging along. Matthew had Village Green Choreography tonight and tomorrow. Mary and I went shopping and then attended church.  The VBS stuff came in and looks like so much fun!  Gives me more drive to make it a great week in June. 
Sounds fun-filled?  Look what it yet to come:
  • Thursday Mary has an appointment to renew her passport so she can travel to South Africa.Then we are off to Holland to see Sarah.  Sarah will have seen the doctor again to see if the negative tests from earlier remain negative.  Girls lunch will be a lot of fun.  We will get to be with Sarah when she gets her cap and gown.  Guess we will have opportunities to order graduation announcements. Going to take my camera and try not to cry too much. Later in the evening Mary will be going to dinner with the Cory's, and I will be helping serve dinner to Village Green on their second night of choreography before Orchestra practice.  
  • Friday Mary is going to get a haircut and then we will head to Grand Rapids for a little shopping. Dinner planned is chicken crescents, a favorite.  
  • Saturday and Sunday are still open for fun and excitement, including bowling.  I had better wash my scrubs since I go back to work on Monday. Sure will need to get my rest.
That is about it!  Have a nice day!

Gracie

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Slept at Home

After a 2 hour nap, I got cancelled from work, as requested.  It was nice to pick up Mary from Brandon's, have dinner together, then help Matthew with his portfolio.  All the pictures are ordered and the plan is formed and in process. Mary even started her laundry.  Time flew by and we went to bed.

Jeff got up early and is off to the apologetics conference today in Grand Rapids. I won't see him until church tomorrow. Matthew is up and ready to go with the Village Green to their choir showcase is Chelsea,MI.  Mary and I have some down time this afternoon.  Some of which I will nap before work and she can work on school and other stuff.  I am going to drop Mary off at Brandon's on the way to work and then pick her up on the way home from work.  Brandon's family loves to have Mary come and spend time with them.  It will be nice for her since Matt won't be home till after midnight, Jeff will be getting ready for church and I will be at work.

Sunday will be church, sleep and work. Will try to fit in a family dinner. Course the rest of the family can go and do something fun or work on FAFSA which is not fun, but necessary. Mary and I hope to go visit Sarah sometime this week.

Signing off,

Gracie

Friday, February 24, 2012

Snow Day!

Our weatherman, Jeff, is the best ever.  This Pastor Master Forecaster told Matt earlier in the week that Friday would most likely be a snow day!  He was right, of course.  The snow has stopped for now, and we have four inches of new snow.  The trees are snowy and it looks like winter again.  Luckily the streets are clearing.  We do expect more later today.

I am scheduled to work the tonight and the weekend.  I was able to get on the cancellation list for tonight just in case the weather gets bad again.  Would prefer not driving in this stuff 40 miles one way.  We will see if they call me off or not.

Mary and Brandon are coming home tonight.  Sure hope they are careful as are the drivers around them.  There was supposed to be a basketball tournament game tonight, but that has been cancelled.

This weekend has lots of  activity.  Matthew has a showcase concert tomorrow night at 8 pm on the east side of the state and the bus leaves at 2 pm and won't get home till around midnight or later. Jeff is going to a Apologetics Conference for the day in Grand Rapids.  I will be sleeping and getting ready for work. 

Sarah reports snow in Holland and also is battling another cold and sore throat.  No strep, so just needs to treat the symptoms until her body fights off the bug.

That is all the news for now. Time for a nap before work.

Grace

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Exciting Times..Busy Schedules

Well,  I didn't get called in on Sunday night. I did work Monday night and it was pretty busy.  It was nice to receive nice compliments from the patients before I left work.  Makes it worth the extra effort.

Yesterday I got an official retired AF dependent ID card.  I actually like the picture too. Unfortunately, it is only good for a few years which is weird, since my last one lasted a long time.  I hated that picture.  Oh well, I have learned to go with the flow. Who knows maybe the next picture will be even better!

Chime Team rehearsal went great.  They have really grown together and play well.  Last Sunday they played Beautiful Savior with just a few rehearsals.  Working on three more songs for the rest of the season.

Got up early today and went to the doctor for a check up.  Lost weight and all my labs are good.  Knee pain is almost non-existent.  The doc was very happy and told me to keep up the good work.  I plan on it!

I am happy to announce that I finally finished Quicken! I let it lag and procrastinated too long, which made it into a daunting job.  Thanks to Jeff he helped me through a few wrinkles. But it is done!  Yay! It feels good, and I don't ever want to get that far behind again.  So I plan to keep up with those slips regularly from now on.

Tonight is the Village Green Variety Show and Matthew will be singing with his barbershop group.  It heard a snipet of it over a voice message and they sounded pretty nice.  Gave him a few thoughts and look forward to the performance.  Interestingly, they almost didn't sing, as they had to find another baritone. So it was miraculous that they found someone willing and sang well the first time through.

Jeff won't be able to go to the concert. It is Ash Wednesday. It aggravates us no end that schools plan events on days that force kids to choose between school and church. Grades reflect attendance too.  In the end, I will be missing church tonight and Jeff will miss the concert.  I wonder if you could watch it live on http://www.mhsaa.tv/greenville  .If not live, maybe after the fact.  I haven't heard anything, but it is possible. Show starts at 7:30 pm.

Matthew has been working hard on the college auditions for technical theatre. The applications are in and now he has the portfolio to finish.  Glad Mary is coming home this weekend. She will be a big help. I know that Matthew has also worked on applications for financial aid.  He has also taken to playing the piano, learning songs and playing by ear!  More recently, he has been reading the music and learning to play. I am so impressed with him.

As mentioned earlier, Mary will be home this weekend for spring break.  I have all next week off after working the weekend.   Glad to have time together!   She is very busy with midterms this week.  She is ready for some rest and relaxation.  Sarah is doing fine at Hope.  Graduation is coming quick and we are very proud of her.

As for now, I had better get working on the rest of my to do list. 

Gracie

Sunday, February 19, 2012

On Call!

I am On Call again tonight till 7 am.  I don't mind, just worry a little about sleeping and not hearing the phone, or getting called in at 4 am for just a few hours, especially since I am 45 minutes away from work. So I am missing bowling, just in case they call as I would leave within a few minutes.

We had a nice weekend.  Friday night we watched the GHS Boy's Basketball team remain undefeated for the regular season with a exciting game.  District tournaments start on Friday. Our team played so well together, and their defense was stellar. Saturday we went to see Little Women at GHS.  The play was very good and the set was awesome.  It is weird that the last play of the year is over already.  GHS Theatre is doing a live "radio show", War of the Worlds next month.  We won't be able to go, as we will be in Oklahoma for Matthew's interview.

I had a busy Sunday morning.  Sunday School...Chime Team..Played for church and Led the VBS informational meeting.I work all next weekend and play for church with the orchestra next Sunday. Better learn to drink some coffee!

No school tomorrow...President's Day, but I am working.  I hope to get some things accomplished before I sleep before work.  That is if I don't get called in tonight.  Then I will sleep most of the day.  Mary comes home on Friday for a week of Spring Break.  Nice that I will be off all next week! 

Guess that is about it.  Have a great week!

Gracie

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

It's That Time of Year!

The time of year that none of us really like at all.  FAFSA. Financial Aid applications.  Having to get your taxes done a month early.  Reporting bank accounts and funds so the government can determine how much of the college bill we can pay, the EFC, Expected Family Contribution. We can't get away from it, so we plug away and get all this numbers in order the best we can, and within certain deadlines.   Our Quicken is nearly updated which is crucial for Jeff to work on taxes. What a headache!

I was busy at work last night, but it was still a good night at work and I learned some new things! That is always a plus.  Everyone is so helpful and willing to help out this newbie. I am on-call tonight, so I need to be available should they need me to come in. I work a regular shift tomorrow. Then I have several nights off. 

We had a nice time with Sarah home for several days and Mary had a nice Valentine's Day as well.  She will be home for spring break in a few weeks.  Yay!

Get's that is all for now.  Have a nice week! Wish us luck on all of our financial forms to fill out!

Gracie

Monday, February 13, 2012

Happy 18th Birthday Matthew!

It was 18 years ago, that Matthew was born.  An unforgettable day, an adorable little boy.  What do you remember about that day?  I remember that this was my only delivery by a midwife. It was exceptional.  Thank you Lisa, CNM!  The next day Jeff brought the girls to the hospital all dressed in hearts with their hair in ponytails.  That was impressive.  I even asked why they were decked out in hearts. He said "It's Valentine's Day!"  I had forgotten all about it, it didn't matter, I had the best Valentine gift ever, my son. We were all so very happy when we took him home.



We had a great weekend! Packed with activities:
  • Friday we finally got snow!  It was so beautiful to watch it fall to the ground.  The only bad thing was that it delayed Sarah from coming home from Holland for her winter break.  Better safe than sorry.  Jeff, Matthew and I went to the GHS boys basketball game and watched a wild and fast paced game.  The best news is that the Yellow Jackets remain undefeated and conference champions!  It was great..right down to the last seconds.
  • Saturday started out with Jeff and Matthew clearing the snow from the sidewalks. It didn't take too long and it looks great. The sky was clear blue with sunshine!  Then Matt's friend, Alex came over and we headed to Craig's Cruisers for pizza, games and go karts.  Sarah met us there too.  We  had a lot of fun.  We brought home 5 goldfish as prizes.  Glad to report that they are all still alive in our 10 gallon tank!  Once we were all home we played a game and then the "kids" watched TV.   I cooked them some food and worked on quicken so we could be one step closer to getting to FAFSA. 
  • Sunday included a nice church service, chicken enchilada dinner together at home, more paperwork, then bowling and Applebees for a late supper.
  • Matthew was back at school on his real birthday and had a good day.  Appreciates all the cards, wishes, calls and gifts.  Mary called and wished him a happy day that put a big smile on his face. He loves his sisters.
It has been so nice having Sarah home.  For those of you who might not have heard, Sarah has accepted a position as a graduate student/AT at the University of Toledo.  Nice to have that decision made and excited about her future.  Just a few more months of undergraduate work and of course the license exam in the spring.  

Mary had a Glee Club retreat this past weekend that she planned as the business manager. It was well received and everyone had a nice time. Guess she needs to plan a trip out of state now to sing at a Director's conference.  Still raising money for South Africa.  Any fundraising ideas?  Brandon took his LSAT test on Saturday and feels it went pretty well. He should know he score near the beginning of March.

I have been off work for over a week now.   Thanks to a co-worker who traded shifts with me so I could be home with Matthew tonight.  I am back to work tomorrow and Thursday and on call Wednesday and Sunday.   I am liking my job very much.


That says it all.

Gracie, mom of Matthew. 

Friday, February 3, 2012

Surprise!

I worked last night instead of tonight.  The hospital called me and asked if I could switch.  I told them I could work 11-7 and they still did a swap.  They sure needed nurses.  It was very busy!  We are making up for the lull we had in January.  I will work Saturday and Sunday as planned.

Jeff had a meeting tonight for middle school youth, so Matthew and I went out for taco bell.  I love the new enchiridos (minus beans).  Matthew had Quesadillas (no sauce).  Red Box was our next stop to rent a few movies.  We await Jeff's arrival before starting them.  I told Matthew that he could teach me a Wii game.  So far that hasn't happened,but he wants me to play a war game with him.. Bad idea, but I will.

Sarah is home safe and sound, and has lots of decisions to make. She also needs to catch up on rest and studying after a two day trip to Toledo.  She has been accepted to Toledo, Western and Indiana.  The dopey Spartans at Michigan State haven't even communicated with her since her application was complete.  Their loss.

Mary is spending time with fundraising for her South African trip this summer. Guess they are going to go out and sing for whatever money people will thow into the bin.  They are going to sell flowers for Valentine's Day too. She also continues to work at a local elem school and has a new student to work with, she loves being in a classsroom.

Matthew has started his last semester at GHS. Likes his classes and is slowly getting to his college stuff.  He really wants to go to Oklahoma!   Jeff and I went to the show that Matthew sculpted rocks, even a skull rock, out of styrofoam. It looked awesome.  He also built the jail bars.   Tomorrow he will help strike the set and  put in the set for Little Women. 

Tomorrow we will be getting a new printer and a new laptop computer for me. The old desktop is moving slow and we rarely use it.  I am excited, as the one I am using right now turns off without notice.

Well, I better go check the dryer..making sure I have enough scrubs for the weekend..

Gracie

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Update!

HAPPY GROUNDHOGS DAY! SIX MORE WEEKS OF WINTER!

Here is the latest:
  • Sarah made it safe to Toledo.  Visit is going well.
  • I changed my dental appointment.  Wanted the dentist that saw me to do the drilling.  Wouldn't you? 
  • Sammy still safe and sound..no more walkabouts yet.
  • Ready for Orchestra tonight 
  • Got a lot accomplished, still need to work on laundry, quicken and cook dinner.
  • Still working this weekend. 
  • Sarah drives home tonight.  Praying for safe travel.
  • No more sore throat or stuffy head today!
Gracie

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Stress and Anxiety

The remainder of this week is causing some stress and anxiety. 
  • Had big plans to accomplish a lot, but woke up with a sore throat and a stuffy head
  • Getting two fillings tomorrow...High Anxiety
  • Choir and Orchestra and a presentation of the GPS Melodrama, Westward Whoa!
  • Working a three night weekend.  
  • Wondering if Sammy will go on walkabout again. 
  • Sarah a little stressed about driving to Toledo today and will spend tomorrow with the Athletic Training Staff and Students.
Guess I had better get some work done.  Charge!

Grace