Surprise!

Mary and Matthew told us that they had a BIG surprise for us when we got home after bowling. We usually go out to eat afterward and the kids will meet up with Randy, Norma and ourselves. Last night we ate at the Reopened Big Boy! It was ok, as usual, and we had a nice time visiting. When we got home the Christmas Tree and some decorations were up! That was a surprise. They did a great job. I finished up some things this morning after I got home from work. It will be hard not to turn on the lights, but we decided we will wait until Thanksgiving for that. There are a few Chrsitmas things that didn't make it upstairs yet, but we have plenty of time to get it up and done. Jeff wants to put up the outside lights soon too, before it gets too cold. As for now, he is putting up a new mailbox. We really needed a larger one, even the postman asked about getting one for all the mail we receive. It has taken longer than expected because the directions might have well been written in Italian. Couldn't say Greek, Jeff can read that!

We have the home improvement bug (plus tax credits for energy saving upgrades). This Friday we are having some electrical wiring done is Sarah's room which will include a ceiling fan with a light! Woohoo! Then with in the next few weeks we will have our kitchen and backdoor area window areas replaced. I won't need to roll up kitchen towels for the drafts anymore! I will be painting the trim in the kitchen before the windows go in. Next year we would like to repaint/wallpaper the kitchen and put up some drapes in Sarah' s room. So many things I'd like to do, especially redo the dining room. Strip the paint off the wood and change the ugly wallpaper...Patience!

Our weekend was good. I think we got a lot done. Hard to remember now that the new week has started. Matthew had to work at the school play rehearsal both Sat and Sunday, not the way he'd really like to spend his weekend. Church went well as did the Friday movie event. The chime team played well and the choir sang very nice too. I have been working hard at music lately. I am playing for this Sunday's service, the Sunday School Christmas program and we have a pretty hard Orchestra song for Christmas. I have also been planning a few special music ideas as well. The laundry got done and I finished Sarah's pillow. It turned out fine. I think she will like it. Mary is sleeping on it right now.

I work the next two days for 12 hours and again on Friday for just 4 hours. That is ok, though as I bake for quilters this week and need to start that painting. Now it is time for me to go pick up some pizza for dinner. Have a great evening.

Grace

PS..Thanks for your prayers for Andrew. He continues to have good progress.

Quilt Top Almost Done!

I had a good morning at work, got some work done around the house and enjoyed time with Mary at her lunch time. She has been coming home for lunch each day. Sent Sarah a care package and then off to quilting. We had a nice chicken lunch and then I got to work! I have 2 of the 3 borders on the quilt top today. Next week I will put the last border on, and decide if I will tackle some cornerstone blocks in the corners. I want to, but I need lots of help. My quilting buddies are always there to help me through.Thanks guys. The name of the quilt design is around the world. Perhaps you can see that in the center is a moose square and then white circle around then green around then moose....etc...

Tonight we had hot dogs for dinner and then we watched the movie "Valkyrie" with Tom Cruise. It is about a coup attempt on Hitler and his regime. I think it is a very good movie. Time to send that one back and wait for the next movie on our list at Netflix.

Sammy hasn't felt too good today. His stomach is making all kinds of noises. No orchestra tonight, but I did work on some songs at home and have a few ideas for special music during the holidays. No work tomorrow, so I can work on laundry, sewing project and music. Then tomorrow night our church is hosting the movie "Expelled" for the community. I saw a clip and I am anxious to see it. Please pray for Sarah's friend, Bev. Her dad died earlier this week. :(

That is all for now...

Grace

A Bright Shiny Day

The weather is chilly with a beautiful blue sky. It is a lovely day...although I did have to scrape frost off my car the past few mornings. I need to start building more time into my morning routine to include warming up the car.

Before I go off to quilting, I thought I should share some good news with you. Mary received her latest ACT scores and got a 30 (that is up 2 points from the last time)! Yay! Now we are just waiting for her acceptance to University of Michigan. Central Michigan has already accepted her and University of Oklahoma should be sending their decision as well. I still don't know why anyone wouldn't want such an exceptional student!


Jeff wore his Class A uniform to the Veterans Day service yesterday to Concordia University Ann Arbor. He looked so good in his uniform. I told him that I miss seeing him in uniform. He got a free meal at Applebee's yesterday. Mary volunteered at Pizza Hut yesterday at a sponsored fundraising event for the Senior Mystery Trip. While I am glad to support the cause, the pizza wasn't that good. I should have skipped pizza hut and ate with Jeff at applebees. I went along with him after choir, but just had a drink and shared a appetizer with Matthew.

Guess that is all the news for now...Have a great Donnerstag!

Grace

Happy Birthday Martin Luther!

My brain has been on overload lately. I think about too much for too long, even about things that I have no control of. You know what comes next right??? Worry and concern. Jobs, school activities, music, chores, health the list goes on. Each day I do remind myself that I should "cast all my cares on Him for He cares for me". Reading Andrew Polzin's caring Bridge journal also helps keep my grounded as I need to have faith and trust in God. They are sure going through more than I am right now! Praise God for all of my blessings.

Nykerk was fun, but the class of 2012 didn't win..Their play was awesome! I wanted to get Sarah's care package together to deliver, but ran out of time. The pillow I was making for her isn't turning out right and I ran out of stuffing. Matthew was "missing" for a while until he called from his friends house. He thought he told us about it, we don't remember..Wolverines lost.

Do I sound like Charlie Brown or Eeyore or what??? How about Gators win! We had a fun time with Sarah! Mary had a great time at the Big House and Ann Arbor with Brandon. GO Gators! They won! Whew! That is better... Bowling was ok, we split the points. I bowled all three games over 100! Kids choir and chimes went well last night and the chimes will play "Fairest Lord Jesus".

Still looking for new opportunities to further my career. Had my glasses fixed and they feel a lot better. The frames got bent up pretty bad. Mary still waits to hear from U of M. Need to go shopping, put laundry away, work on some music and sleep. Back to work tomorrow by 0500!

Trying to keep my smile!

Grace

A Beautiful Day in Michigan

It is going to be a very nice Michigan fall day. Blue sky, a breeze and temps in the 60's! How nice for this nice weather to fall on the weekend! A great day for football in the Big House~Go Blue! Mary is Ann Arbor to attend the game with Brandon and his family. She has her nice blanket she made, with grandma's help, eventhough she probably won't get too cold there today. I know that she will have a great time, even better if they win! Matthew is out with the Village Green collecting pop cans for a fundraiser. Jeff is going out for a run before we both have lunch with Thrivent at the Winter Inn. I love their burgers and steak fries!

This afternoon we are going to Holland for the Nykerk Cup. We will meet Sarah for dinner and deliver a few needed snacks and a small personal project we are doing for her. I still have laundry to fold and a sunday school lesson to prepare. This week's story: Hezekiah Prays. I don't even remember Hezekiah!

Thanks for all your prayers for our friend Andrew. He is making some progress and even opened his eyes for his mom. Guess he is still on pain meds and some sedation meds. If you'd like to read an update, here is the link: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/polzin/journal.

I continue to job search. Seems no matter where I apply, I get the same response, "You weren't selected", not even for a phone call. As much as I love my patient, I need a change and a challenge. Thanks for your prayers and support.

Need to run in order to accomplish today's events. Go Blue against Purdue. I guess if they can win today they go to a bowl game! I'd be remiss if I didn't say GO GATORS!

Grace グレース・ウィルヘルム

Thanks to Justin Zachow for typing my name in Japanese. I don't have the Japanese word processor. I love it!

Just Before the Weekend

Wednesday was a good but long day. I worked for 12 hours with a very energetic little girl and then came home and ate frozen pizza made by Mary and then off to choir for a couple hours. Had to watch the last baseball game of 2009 as the New York Yankees won over the Phillies. Next year, watch out for those Tigers!

I had a good report from the foot doctor this morning and won't be needing a cortisone shot. If my feet plateau with moderate heel pain or if they get worse then a shot will be needed. I sure do not want that! I finished the main portion of my moose quilt today and will start bordering next week. Lunch was very good chicken and rice and then I picked up Mary from school so she could tutor this afternoon. She had a hair cut before she went of to Spanish class at the Community College in our newly repaired van. All the dial are correct and we even have new keys! I sure hope this fixes things "permanently".

Thanks to those praying for our friend Andrew. He made some awesome progress today as they art starting to bring him out of sedation. Andrew followed commands like "wiggle your toes", "squeeze my hand" and my personal favorite "smile". Praise the Lord. Please keep praying for Andrew and his family as the road is still a very long one.

Tomorrow I work for 8 hours then I hope we can watch our Netflix movie. Matt wants to go to a zombie hunt game. Saturday Mary goes to the "Big House"in Ann Arbor to watch Michigan play Purdue. Matt has a pop can drive. Jeff and I are going to a Thrivent Lunch and then off to Hope College for the Nykerk Cup. The freshman class competes against the sophomore class (Go 2012!) in song theater and oration. Evidently it is quite the event and Sarah's roommate is part of the competition. Sunday is Preschool Sunday and the Praise Team will be leading the songs.

Well, eventhough I don't need to be to work until 8am, I had better sign off.

Grace

PS - Picture is from the Air Zoo in Kalamazoo!

Halloween Came~They Stayed...

Can you guess??? Jeff and I heard bats early this morning from their favorite spot, the space between our ceiling and the floor of the attic! Somehow they got it, and remembered how much they liked our house. Seems like this is going to keep happening...I guess I should just name them and call them pets..hahaha!

The kids had the day off from school and we had a nice time together in the afternoon. I had to work in the morning and get my teeth cleaned. Matt worked at the theater in the scene shop. By two we were on the road to Kalamazoo to see the Air Zoo. General admission is free till the end of the year and we wanted to see what it was like. Well, it is great! Mary and Matt rode in the simulators and we all watched a 4-D movie and rode a corny space shuttle ride the the space station. I really liked all of the different planes to see and got pictures of Mary and Matthew in some cockpits. There were pictures of people I recognized from history or movies about true stories (i.e. The Right Stuff and Gen Doolittle from the Pearl Harbor movie). The pinnacle seemed to be the spacewalk experience. You get strapped in and you walk around the circle. Only once you get to a certain point you don't walk, you flip over! Evidently the astronauts use this to learn to walk in space. I prefer to walk on land! Still it was A LOT OF FUN! Enojy the pictures and video. LOL!



We stopped at Bennigan's for dinner and had lots of food. Mary had pot roast, Jeff had a new kind of burger, Matthew had chicken strips and I had fajitas! If that wasn't enough we stopped at Rosie's too for ice cream! They were delicious. At home we watched the World Series and then off to bed.

Today has been a good day too. The sun is out, I got a nice hair cut, made lunch for Mary and had lunch with my golf friends. I am getting a lot of the things accomplished today that was on my list. I need still need to cook dinner, shop for a few things and maybe start the laundry.

Please pray for Andrew Polzin, the son of our pastor when we lived in Georgia. He was in a car accident and sustained a severe head injury. They all need our prayers. Thanks! I have been keeping up on http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/polzin and I am amazed at their strong faith and witness at such a difficult time. Their journal entries are truly inspiring! They are ministering to me as they go through a place I hope never to walk. God Bless them!

Tomorrow I work 12 hours, then choir and praise team. It promises to be a busy day.

Just in: Our vans dials are all screwy again, even the speedometer, and will be in need of repair immediately! Darn!

Gracie

Happy November

Sunday morning church went well and the kids sang Awesome God wonderfully! The Jonah story went well, and sunday school christmas program practice #1 was productive. I am in charge of music this year. Afternoon was nap time and chill time for all of us. Bowling was good for me. I bowled a 169! Our team lost 3 points last night. Jeff bowled well both at the tournament and last night. Both of our averages went up! Mary is home safe and sound from Ann Arbor. She goes back on Saturday for a Michigan Football game at the Big House! That will be exciting!

I worked this morning and then had a dentist appointment. Mary is working on Spanish as there is no school today. Matthew is working at the scene shop at school. We might go to the Air Zoo this afternoon in Kalamazoo. Just depends. I do have choir/chimes tonight. Lots going on, will keep up abreast of all of the activities. Have a great day!!

Grace

A Good Last Day of October

Mary is safe on the other side of Michigan. Should be enjoying the Detroit Symphony right now. Sarah is back safe at Hope College after a cross country meet in Adrian MI. Guess the Men's and Women's team came in 2nd! Now she is watching a movie with friends on campus. Trunk or Treat was a sucess over 250 people came through. We all had a lot of fun and Sammy the dog was very good at his first ever Trunk or Treat! Everyone liked him.. He even "sang" a little. Still have to prepare my lesson for Sunday School and go buy some milk. Glad that the Gators won, Sooners are winning and sad that Michigan lost. Tebow now holds the record in run in touchdowns! That's cool. He got to keep the ball. :) Guess that is it. Happy November and Here's to "All the Saints"!

Grace

Sammy's Ready for Halloween!

Sammy is going to be a skeleton~I think he looks cute! It doesn't fit him very well, but he is tolerating it. I won't make him wear it the way it was designed. Thinking about taking him to trunk or treat so everyone can see him! Wonder if he will like it?? I think I am going to put a poster on our door directing them to church for candy. I don't want to miss trunk or treat...it is a lot of fun!

Matthew's Pumpkin Carving

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! We didn't get any decorating done, but Matthew carved this year's pumpkin by himself! What a great job! Just had to use it for the BIG blog picture. I have some before and after pictures on the family photo link later today.

Jeff is home safe and sound. It is good to have him back. Looks like he'll be home till spring. He will be bowling in a tournament in Grand Rapids. I may or may not go and watch. Matthew is working tomorrow at the show "In the Mood" at our performing arts center. I thought about going to that instead of the bowling, but it is $25 per person. He will work 10 hours and it is a paid job~! Yay Matthew! Mary is leaving for Ann Arbor in the morning to visit her friend and they are going to hear/see the Detroit Symphony. It is supposed to be a great show.

The weather has been yucky. Rainy, windy and chilly> Wonder how cold it will be for the trick or treaters? I have 600 pieces for our house, and 220 for our church's trunk or treat. That event has been a great success over the past few years.

It is LATE! Better get to bed.

Grace

It's Been a Good Day Overall

This morning my mom and I left home at 0915, sent a box to Sarah, picked up Norma and then headed for Detroit airport. We were there just before noon without any problems. It was sad to see mom leave, but we had a really fun time!

Norma and I headed back north and west. We stopped for lunch at Culver's and then went shopping at JoAnn Fabrics, Nike Store Outlet and Bath and Body Works. I bought some nice new shoes for my sore feet and some lotion for my dry hands! I found Gator material and bought a little of that for something special. We had a really nice time together, and got home around 5 pm.

Back at our house, dinner was homemade pizza before heading to the Fall Orchestra concert at the high school. Mary was a cello playing a cello. The concert was good for early in the year, including middle and high school students. The finale were songs from the Phantom of the Opera, and the Phantom showed up lurking around the orchestra. It was really cool.

I have to work early hours tomorrow and Friday. Tomorrow is 3 hours and Friday is 12 hours. After work tomorrow I will go to quilting with the main dish for lunch time. Need to be in Grand Rapids by 2pm and then will attend a meeting about how to find money for college. Jeff comes home Friday night. Saturday Jeff is bowling in a tournament and Mary is going to Ann Arbor to visit her friend and then they will attend the Detroit Symphony. Trunk or Treat at Mount Calvary at 6 pm~ I can't believe it is nearly November.

I am pretty tired, so I am going to get some sleep before my alarm goes off at 0430!

Grace

PS- I talked to my mom. She is home safe and sound. Evidently the plane was like an Emergency Room. Lots of sick people sneezing coughing and even throwing up! Stay healthy mom! Thanks for coming~ we had lots of fun!

Time Is Up

Well since it is after midnight, I can say that my mom leaves today. We sure had a lot of fun. In just 8 hours, I will be driving her back to Detroit airport, along with my friend Norma. I am glad she can come along so I have a buddy to drive home with too.! Thanks Norma!

Sunday's service was superb. The music was awesome and Jeff's sermon was great. We had burgers on the grill for lunch and then we were off to the reformation service in Sidney. Mary and her musical friends were playing for an anthem. They played well and this service was nice, but much more "relaxed" and the ringing of the bells took several minutes. By the time we got home, we had a few hours before bowling. Mom and I did some stamp crafts for her to take home and Jeff took a needed nap. Matthew had his friend over and they played the Wii and even did some wrestling! Yikes! Bowling went really well for me. I bowled over average all three games. We took one point and our opponents took 3. Oh well, we still had fun!

I worked 5 hours on Monday and then spent the rest of the day with mom. Jeff left for military duty while I was at work. Matt and Grandma watched Ghostbusters, while Mary and I made chicken crescents for dinner. My kids choir and chime team rehearsals went well and the kids will sing on Sunday. Mary has been working on her cello costume for the orchestra concert tomorrow. It turned out nice. She brought Liam, the cello, home today to make sure she could play well with the costume on! It seemed to work out nicely and I took a picture. She did a great job. Mary's latest project is to crochet a Michigan blanket. She started it off with Grandma's help and then got several rows done. Grandma worked on it today while she was at school. It is coming along nicely, but there is a lot to go! Will it be done in time for the Michigan/Purdue game? She will be in the Big House next weekend and this weekend is a trip to Ann Arbor to hear the Detroit Symphony's Tchaikovsky concert! Still waiting to hear from U of M about her acceptance. We are trying to be patient, but others are getting their responses.


Mom and I had fun runnning around the stores today and then we enjoyed dinner at Applebee's before Mary went to College Spanish. Matthew drove home with a stop at the orchard and the car wash. My Prius is clean! Thanks Matt! Got some laundry done and played a game a scrabble. Mary won, Mom came in second and I had an awesome word~quaint! I wonder what points I would have scored? We just play without keeping score and the first person without letters wins! It is fun and less stressful!

Well, I'd better get to bed and rest before the big drive tomorrow~Orchestra concert to follow!

Grace

Today is the day to remember my wonderful Grandma Irene! Happy Birthday GG! I know she is happy in Heaven.

Time is Really Flying!

The week with Mom is going fast! We are having lots of fun and keeping very busy, as usual:

~The concert on Tuesday night was wonderful. Matthew and Mary did a great job in show choir. It is amazing how much the students in learn in a short amount of time. Next Wednesday Mary has an orchestra concert. The students are dressing up as it is just before Halloween. Mary has constructed a cello costume, so a cello will be playing a cello! Too bad Mom has to leave that morning, so she will miss it.

~I worked on Wed and Friday for eight hours. Mom read her books, kept Sammy company and worked on other projects, including preparing to play the organ for church. The weather turned colder and we had soup and sandwich for dinner. I showed mom the Wii games and she played Price is Right and enjoyed watching the sports wii games.

~Thursday we went quilting and enjoyed lunch together with the quilters. Mom practiced the organ while I worked on my moose quilt. Mom helped in the quilters room after she was done practicing. We are working on a HUGE project...a quilt with 35 cats on it! Thursday night was the Brass Trio practice that went very well. We play for church for the first time of the season tomorrow! Reformation!

~After work on Friday Jeff barbequed some venison that tasted really good. I would have thought it was beef if I didn't know what he was cooking. We had some pizza too. Kind of a crazy mixture hey? Mary had a gig practice for a reformation service in the evening. More Wii games and watched "Monsters and Aliens". I thought the movie was just ok. I am glad I didn't pay a lot to watch it in the theater. Then we had a big surprise! Sarah came home! Her friend Kellie was home on furlough from the Marines, so a friend picked her up after school and they came "home" to visit. She stopped by with her friends and said hello and chatted for a while. I know they had a really nice time.

~This morning Mary took the ACT at the community college. She said she feels really good about it. The last time she took the ACT her calculator's batteries were dead. She did the math with paper and pencil. She still scored a 28! She expects that today's test will be higher. We should be hearing from University of Michigan very soon. They would be crazy not to accept her! Mom and I went to a craft show, then did some shopping for some of our own crafts! All of us went in to Grand Rapids for steak dinner. We got home after 9 pm and watched the end of the Gator game. Yay, another Win! The past few hours were spent at church practicing for church and preparing for Sunday School. It sure was a packed day!

~Tomorrow is busy too! Church in the morning and then we will go to the service that Mary is playing for in the afternoon. Bowling in the evening! Jeff leaves on Monday for Air Force duty.

Still enjoying the Leaves!

Grace

First Concert of the Year

Tonight is the High School's first choir concert. Mary and Matthew will be at the end of the program in the show choir. Matthew's first year in the top choir! I am so glad that Mom is here to enjoy the concert. We are all excited! Jeff has council meeting, but he plans to leave in time for the show choir performance.

Sarah is back at Hope College. Mom liked her room, and we toured the chapel as well. We got back home in time for Mary's doc appointment. She has had a bad cough for several days. No pneumonia! Yay! Looks like a virus and she should be feeling better in a few days. For now she will continue with the cough syrup and an inhaler.

Better get to the concert!

Grace

Mom is Here!

Mom's airplane was on time in Detroit and we made it home by 5pm. She really loves all the colors of fall. Don't see much of that at all in Florida. Introduced Culver's burgers to her for lunch and then we all had dinner at our Mexican restaurant. Mary and Matt had practice for the choir show tomorrow, Jeff had a meeting and Mom, Sarah and myself went shopping for food at Meijer. Have one more load of laundry to finish. Work for 3 hours in the morning. Mary and Brandon are at the movies and Sarah is across the street at our neighbors finishing a movie from last night.

Tomorrow we take Sarah back to college by lunch time. She has to work at a cross country practice at 2pm. I think we will take a scenic route home and then the concert in the evening. I work Wednesday and Friday too. Time with my mom will fly by!

Guess that is all for now.

Grace

Sunday Afternoon

It has been a really great Sunday! Sunday school was fun, we learned about Elijah goes to Heaven in the fiery chariot. Adult Choir sang just beautifully today! With the usual few errors that I make on a Sunday, I think I did pretty well. One communion hymn was 8 verses. I was going to play four, play a little interlude, and then the last four. Well, my kids in the front pew sang out verse 5 without me! So from now on, I am just going to play the whole hymn start to finish. The chime team played for the first time of the season and I think it was the best ever! I am very proud of the team. We even got applause! The congregation thanked us with gifts and a cake for Pastor's Appreciation day. We immediatlely used our new gift card to Applebee's for lunch.

Mary is back out to Brandon's for the day. Sarah 's friend is here and we are playing Dutch Blitz. Sarah is winning :( Matthew is playing video games. Earlier, Jeff, Matthew and I were outside raking leaves. There sure were lots of them. The picture of the leaves at the top were on our yard! I am close to getting the laundry done and the kitchen is cleaned. Bowling starts in just 30 minutes! I hope that I can do better than last week's 83! That is all for now I guess!

Homecoming 2009

Matthew decided to go to the dance. So I had to take a picture of him. He just got his hair cut today! I took him over at 8 pm and will wait for him to call for pick up.

Brandon made it back to Greenville about an hour ago and Mary is out visiting. Sarah has two friends over watching a scary movie! What is a scary movie without popcorn, chips and salsa and pizza rolls in the dark!!!! I am in the living room folding clothes and will start my sunday school lesson very soon. I think I have the music for church under control. Jeff is at church getting ready for service. It is certainly a lot more quiet there!

Sad to see Bradford hurt again and the Sooners losing the game. Glad that the Gators could pull off another win! That was too close of a game for me. Michigan had a "training" week against

Delaware State, as the radio man explained. We'll see who is at the top of the Football picks this week. Sarah and Mary have been there a long time!

Have a good Sunday!

Grace

Sarah's Home

Got home from work on time yesterday. Jeff and I drove over to Hope College and brought Sarah home for the weekend. It is fall break. She was supposed to have a Spanish midterm Friday but after a couple twists and turns, the midterm is now on Wednesday, the day after they get back from break. Sarah had hoped to get it over with. She and some friends studied two hours together on Thursday to be prepared! We went to the Greenville High School football homecoming game on the way home. Sarah worked down on the field with Mr Day. It was very cold. I had to go sit in the car, since I wasn't dressed warm enough. After we got home we ordered a pizza and enjoyed eating together watching baseball.

This morning I drove Mary to Central Michigan University for the Centralis Scholarship competition. It was an unusual day. Mary found grammatical errors on the power point and the message from the professor of the year got a little silly. Didn't even get the weather science right. The e-mail confirmation letter Mary received from the admissions office had run on sentences and poor punctuation. It doesn't give her a lot of motivation to go there for preparing as an English teacher. As for the competition, she said the essay question was easy. We won't know if she makes it to the next round until January. Should she win, the scholarship is a full ride scholarship for 4 years.

This afternoon we are watching football. Mary and I listened to the Wolverines on the radio on the way home from CMU. They were way ahead at half time~40 something to 3. We are watching OU battle Texas. Poor Bradford is injured again. Wonder if I will be able to watch the Gators tonight? I do have to prepare for Sunday School and I play for church tomorrow. Chimes play for the first time of the season. Lots to do! Laundry is extra large with all of us at home. I don't mind....I love having Sarah home. She is going to have a few friends over to watch a horror movie tonight. I won't be joining them this time. Matthew has decided to go to the homecoming dance afterall. Brandon is coming home tonight, so Mary will go spend time with him this weekend.

Well, if I am going to be prepared for tomorrow, I had better get moving!.....after the game!

Grace

Spirit Week

This is spirit week. It ends with our school's homecoming game on Friday and the dance on Saturday. Neither Mary or Matthew will be going to the dance this year. It will save me some money on dresses, clothes and hair! Anyway the week started off with twin day. Mary and a friend wore the same style shirt. Tuesday was camo day. Mary wore Matt's paintball camo shirt/jacket with jeans and Matthew wore a black shirt and camo pants. Yesterday was black and White day. Mary looked very very nice..Matt didn't want to participate which is fine. Today was wear your favorite school clothes. Mary wore Michigan and Matthew wore Michigan State! Will there be a rivalry within the family? Sarah of course would be wearing Hope College. Tomorrow is Purple and Gold day, GHS school colors! I hope we can win our football game.

I had a good day today. Got some things accomplished in the morning including baking brownies for the quilter's lunch. They turned out really tasty! Never put candy corn on brownies until after you bake them...they sink and melt. I learned that today. I got three more rows on my moose quilt done. It is looking really nice. This afternoon I tried to use a computer program to write music for orchestra. I got too overwhelmed and frustrated, so I just wrote it on staff paper like I am used to doing. The transposition wheel that I have is really helpful. Mary and I made ravioli for dinner and then she had class and the rest of us went to orchestra. The brass trio sounds great. Matthew's trumpet really adds to the depth of the song. He likes to improvise a lot. Most of it sounds really good. Jeff plays his French horn and Daryl the euphonium. We are ready to play for reformation sunday. Mom H. will be here and is playing for the service.

Tomorrow Jeff will go get Sarah from college for a long weekend. I work till 1630 and then will be home doing laundry and if it is nice, maybe go to the football game. There should be a parade too. Sarah and Jeff should be back in Greenville around 1930. Saturday morning Mary will be writing an essay for a scholarship competition. It will be an early morning...registration is at 0800! We will be back for lunch and then there is a party in the afternoon. Brandon is coming home in the evening for a long weekend as well, so I am sure Mary will want to go spend time with him. Monday Mom arrives in Detroit, and Jeff and I will be going to pick her up in the afternoon. Sarah goes back Tuesday, so Gma will get to see everyone.

Guess that is all for now...

Grace

Tuesday Took a Turn

Today was planned out for certain things to get done and things turned out very different. We ate the dinner I planned and I got a few projects done this morning, but the afternoon was like a whirlwind of stress!

Took the Prius into Grand Rapids to get the oil changed by the Toyota dealer. I had a coupon, plus I felt sure that they would know for sure how to maintain the Hybrid. Well, it wasn't that good of an experience. One of the service guys showed me that I had dirty air filters (Yes, they were dirty). However it seemed like $70 is a lot to pay for them. I was not prepared today to have that done. So I said I would think about it and come another time. When I picked up the car, the was a notation on the slip that said the filters were very dirty and the owner declined replacement. Reading between the lines, it said you are a bad car owner. Shame on you! As I drove away, I heard a terrible gear sound! I stopped, drove around the parking lot and could not replicate the noise, so I drove home. No problems. I stopped at Big Boy to get Mary an application for work. When I got back in the car and started it up and drove away the noise was back....I called Toyota and said I was coming back. Another 30 minute drive one way to have the fix what ever they broke. I dealt with another service person, whom I like and had before. Infact his son went to school with Sarah. He got the mechanic out and we rode together and the sound was replicated. He got out and discovered that there was a piece of metal bent on the wheel that the tire was hitting.. He was glad I brought it back and said there was no damage to the tire sensor wire, wheel, metal or tire! Yay! He's not sure how that happened, but I told him everything was fine until after the oil change. So far so good.

After driving another 40 minutes home, I had planned on talking about money planning, jobs and school. Well Mary had another blow by the theater department. Seems the director likes to say one thing and do another. Oh to the opening of new wounds. I am hoping that we can come to some resolution so we can all go on without bitterness. The money talk will have to wait.

Mary had Spanish class after dinner and then came home and is talking to her best friend and did her homework. Matt had a little nap and did his homework too. I am doing my homework, ~blogging! I want to write a report for music committee meeting too, since I will be at work tomorrow. Sarah comes home on Friday.

Jeff is on his way home from the Pastor's conference and should be home in about one hour from now. Yay!

That was my day in a large nutshell.

Grace

!!! Just realized that I lost another earring !!!!!! Darn !!!!

What a Wonderful Weekend!

Jeff and I had a really nice time in Minnesota for our friend Mark's wedding. The weekend was filled with lots of activities and excitement.

Our plane to Minnesota was delayed almost an hour due to weather conditions. The ride there was fine and they made up time, except when we landed they had no gate assignment for us. We sat on the tarmac for nearly 30 minutes waiting for a place to park! Many passengers saw their connections leave right in front of their eyes! We were glad that we didn't have any connections. Once we were parked at the gate it was off to the marathon of finding the baggage claim and rental cars. There is lots of walking at this airport and thankfully people movers too! We noticed that this airport is prepared for winter! The rental car garage and even gas refills are in the basement, inside! We drove a Toyota Matrix while we were in Minneapolis. It was very nice.

We drove across the highway to the Mall of America. What a place! It is huge and has an amusement park inside the mall! We ate at Tony Roma's Place for Ribs. I got chicken which was very good, and Jeff had the ribs which were ok but overpriced. Afterward Jeff treated me to Coldstone Ice Cream. I had a wafflebowl dipped in chocolate and sprinkels with chocolate chocolatechip ice cream. It was delicious, but very filling! I don't think I could have eaten one more sprinkle. Jeff had a waffle cone dipped with peanuts and cake batter ice cream and oreos. Naturally we needed to walk it off so we spent a good amount of time walking around to see what was there. There was Legoland, the rides, American Girl Doll store and even the home plate from a previous baseball stadium where the mall stands today! We did purchase a few things, and I looked for shoes that I ended up finding at Target near our hotel.

Jeff drove some pretty heavy rush hour traffice north through town to our hotel. The Suite we stayed at was very nice and reasonable with our military discount. It was a little late, but we headed back south to Minneapolis to see if we could see a play at the Guthrie Theater. Each night, 15 minutes before the curtain call, the sell tickets from 15-25 dollars depending on the day and time. This line is called the rush line and is first come, first served! We got there and since it was a Friday evening, we bought two tickets at $25/each. We were on the floor, 8 rows fromt he stage! How awesome is that! The play was amazing.. we saw Oscar Wilde's "The Importance of Being Earnest". Lots of laughs and good acting. This was a theater kind of in the round. Before the show, we went out on the observation deck and saw the night lights of the city. I really liked the lights on the bridge.

Saturday morning we met some new friends at breakfast. Paul and Monique were AF friends with Mark and Kim as well. I guess he was Mark's boss 3 times! Anyway, it was nice to meet new people and make new friendships. We sat together at the reception and had lots of fun. Jeff and I went exploring a little and had a nice pizza lunch at a nearby restaurant. When we got back to the hotel, it was time to get ready for the wedding.

The wedding was very nice. The pastor had a nice message. The bride's daughter and a sister sang some songs. This wedding was very emotional as well. Mark's son Scott couldn't be there as he is in pilot training in the USAF. There was a candle lit there to signify his prescence from far away. Mark's brother was the best man in Scott's stead, and the rest of the bridal party were the children of the bride and groom. Pat lost her husband to cancer, and most of you know how sad we were when Kim went to heaven 2 years ago. It is comforting to know that she is in God's presence. In that light, there were a myriad of emotions "flying" around. It was wonderful to see Mark very happy.

Sunday morning came early, and we were invited to share in the event of gift opening. We had a nice breakfast together and met some new people and have good fellowship. Mark's neighbors from Maryland are a lot of fun! Before we knew it, it was time to head back toward the airport. We had an hour or so to burn, so we just drove around the city to see what we could find. One thing we couldn't find was a gas station to fill up the tank for the rental car. We weren't going to run out, but we needed to return it full.

We returned our car, checked one peice of luggage for $15, went through security and then made the haul back to the gate, this time using a tram! YAY! I still can't believe we now have to pay for our luggage to ride in the underbelly of the plane. It is like a robber without a gun! We stopped for a bite to eat at the airport, since we had to high tail it to bowling as soon as we got home! I had Chinese and Jeff had a bagel sandwich. The plane was overbooked and they were asking for volunteers with flexible scheduling to fly home "tomorrow". We thought about it, then they said that the next flight was Monday at 3:40 pm! That is crazy...so no way Jose'! The plane was boarded and there we were again waiting on a plane for what? Evidently there was some maintenance issues, then the pilot apologized and said that the airport was short on workers and our luggage wasn't on the plane yet and catering hadn't arrived! What on earth are we paying that $15 dollars for??? It was another 30 mintues before we left, almost on hour after our scheduled departure. Needless to say that once back in Grand Rapids, we were very late to bowling. We bowled the last game with the team and then bowled the games we missed by ourselves. We ended up splitting the points and took 2. I had only one good game, 126. Jeff bowled pretty well and maintained his average of 150. Thanks to Mary, she brought our balls to the alley so we wouldn't have to stop at home first.

The kids did really well while we were gone. Mary and Matthew went to Hope College to visit Sarah. They went to a soccer game, played Dutch Blitz , ate dinner at Steak and Shake and watched a scary movie together. It is so nice to know your kids like spending time together! Mary did report to us Sunday morning that Sammy ripped and ate part of the cardboard backing of our refrigerator! I don't know what got into him, or how he actually got behind there in the first place. We have been finding him in wierd places. He has been sleeping upstairs, in Jeff's office and curled up by the kitchen table.

Now that we are back home, Jeff leaves again this afternoon for Pontiac for the Pastor's Conference. He will be back on Wednesday. I work Wednesday and Friday. Sarah comes home Friday for the weekend. Mary and Matt keep up with their activities at school. My mom arrives one week from today and will stay for ten days! Hurray! I will do my best to keep you updated during the week.

Have a great day!

Grace

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! LOTS OF LOVE!

Before We Fly Away

Had some good work days. I managed to sew a few rows of my new quilt today after my foot doctor appointment. Got some new shoe inserts and meds. We will see if that helps my sore feet heal! Theater boosters meeting went well. Came up with some good ideas and strategy. Was able to talk to the managers about the fall play fiasco. We had a good discussion. Time to move on and look to the future. Mary is doing well and Matthew is anxious to get back to scenery and floor work as soon as the Stage Manager is done with soccer. The kids are going to see Sarah this weekend. I know they are looking forward to being together. Jeff and I leave tomorrow for Minnesota. We are excited to share in the joy of our friend's wedding. We will get back on Sunday, maybe even in time to bowl! Better finish packing!

Get Me to the Church on Time!

Grace

A Quick Note from Sarah

First off, I'd like to say this is my first attempt blogging so bare with me.

On November 13, Hope College is having a Relay for Life. My friend and I had decided towards the end of last year that we wanted to make an "Athletic Training" team for the next relay. Now its coming up. I am posting this today to see if you would consider donating to a very worthy cause. For those of you who aren't exactly sure what Relay for Life is here's a quick refresher.

Relay For Life is a really fun event that raises money to combat this disease and to spread awareness about how we can protect ourselves from cancer. It brings together people of all ages and we walk around a track for 24 hours to signify that cancer never sleeps. It’s basically a time of celebrating those who have battled the disease, remembering those who have died and a chance to fight back against a disease that takes too much from too many.

If you would like to help by donating, please click HERE. This will take you to my personal page and will give you a link to donate. I know, lots of links.

Thank you so much for your help.
~Sarah

Enthusiasm~Hope~Sadness

Well I really hoped the Tigers would win tonight. They started off so well~3-0! Then the game got closer and closer, tied and retied...I still had hope until the last Twin crossed the plate to win. Sniff Sniff... It was a crazy game, at least it was close and not a blowout! Who will I root for to win the series???? I'm thinking St Louis, since I went to nursing school there and they were my team when Ozzie Smith was their shortstop. As you can imagine Sarah is very unhappy as well. She loves that game and team more than anyone else I know. The commercial of all the babies dressed in baseball clothes, my grandchilden will be wearing a Tigers jersey one day! No Rush though! Hhahahaha.

Tomorrow is another all day work day and then choir. Not much time to get other things done. I work early on Thursday too and then have a doctor appointment for my plantar fascitis, quilting and a theater booster meeting.. Packing and dinner with the Gideon people. Yes the ones with the Bibles. Wedding this weekend. We can't wait. That is all for now...GO TIGERS, I love you anyway!

Grace

Just a Quick Update

Here are the 2009-2010 Hope College Athletic Tranining Students. Sarah looks so beautiful don't you think? It is nice to have her in the front row. I worked yesterday all day then had some really good music rehearsals. The kids sang well, and the chime team really turned the corner this week and are melding nicely. I worked this morning for 3 hours, and am back home with a bad headache. I took my meds and now am off to take a nap. All is well otherwise. ~Grace

Win Some~LOSE ALL!

None of our teams won today. That was a really downer. Michigan tied it up in the final minutes of regular play, then blew it with a great change to score in OT. Tigers couldn't win again today. I think that is 3 losses in a row. They have to win tomorrow! It would help if the Twins would lose too! Then the Sooners started out strong and then had trouble in the second half. Close to a touchdown, but not close enough, they lost too.

Otherwise we had a nice day. Went shopping a few times, once for groceries and once for new church pants for Matthew. Made Ravioli for dinner. Then play Dutch Blitz for 2 rounds. I won a game and Mitch won a game. Matthew wanted to challenge me again, but I had to get ready for Sunday School and practice a song for church tomorrow. I am looking forward to the kids choir singing tomorrow.

That is it folks!

Grace

Football Day!

I am pretty disappointed. The Michigan vs Michigan State game is not on our TV or on ESPN 360! So I am sitting here at the computer listening to game on CBS sports on the U of M website. The game just started and Michigan already got a field goal after an interception. Mary and Brandon are at their friend's house to watch the game on the channel we don't get! Sooner game on ESPN tonight and maybe even on a regular tv channel. We will see. Sarah is in Lansing today for Hope College Cross Country meet. Go Dutch~! Hope she doesn't have too many injuries, course that is how you get experience. Still I pray no one gets hurt.

Dinner last night was delicious. Everything turned out really well. Brandon and Mary sang for several hours last night, something they love to do! Jeff and I wathced "Memoirs of a Geisha". I just love that movie, it might show up on my Christmas list. Matthew's friend came over to spend the night. They watched some TV, were on facebook and now they are playing tennis down the street.

I am going to work on some picture projects and plan for Sunday School tomorrow. I need to go through my sock drawer too. I have too many, many with holes in them :( I will need to go to the store too for milk and a few other groceries. I applied for a few more jobs with the same result- Not selected. Sure wish God would let me in on His plan! I know Iknow, have faith! I do!

The rain is gone for now and the sun is out with a partly cloudy sky. We never heard from the Miss Danish people, so Mary had no idea where or when to meet for the parade. So we said go ahead and spend the day with your friends. The Miss Danish people really should have told her when to meet long ago.

That is all for now...Hope the Wolverines can start running the ball better. State is ahead!

Grace

So Far Sooooo Fun!

Mary made it safely to Ann Arbor and is already heading back with Brandon and their friend Nicole. I expect they will be "home" for dinner around 7 or 7:30pm. I feel better when she is not driving alone.

Matthew and I went bowling to support the Senior Mystery Trip this afternoon. We bowled on a lane by ourselves and actually got 4 games in 90 minutes. My first game was great~124! The middle two were exactly the same 98. I redeemed myself the last game with a 115. Matthew had a really good last game, 126! He should have found that ball from the beginning! After bowling we met Jeff at Applebee's for lunch. Jeff and I had lunch combo~French Onion soup and French Dip Sliders. MMmmm. Matthew had chicken fingers.

Back at home, we learned to play Dutch Blitz. We like it a lot. It will be even more fun with more people playing! I won the first round and then we had to stop as it is time to make the crescents. I also went out and harvested most of our tomatoes, even if they were green. I don't want to have the cold temperatures ruin the rest of our crop. Listen to me like I am some kind of farmer! Anyway the green ones are on the sill waiting to ripen. Right along with the cool weather, many many of the leaves are turning already. They started early this year...end of August. We have a light blanket of leaves covering our lawn on the side of the yard.

Well, better go...I want dinner to be great!

Grace

No School~ Rain~New Quilt

Today is a teacher work day and Matthew and Mary have no school today! Mary is already gone. She is going to spend the day in Ann Arbor with Brandon. He and another mutual friend will come home tonight. I will be doing a lot of praying, especially when she is driving alone on the highway. I don't work today either, so I am going to try to think of something fun to do with Matthew. There is a bowling special at noon, so we might do that. I sure need to practice. I wanted to take him golfing, but this rainy weather prevents that. We are going to learn Dutch Blitz!

The weather is definitely fall weather. We have had some really cold temperatures for the season. We even had 30 degree temps one morning! The high temps are in the 50's on the average. The storm windows are closed and the heater has been working again...Jeff already misses the summer.

After Sarah called last Monday reporting cold temps and high winds, I decided she needed her winter coats! We forgot them last weekend for her birthday. So after PT in Grand Rapids I drove over to Holland and hand delivered her two coats! I also tried to treat her to a McD's burger. I had a strong urge to check the meal after leaving the store and they screwed it all up. So I had to drive back and get a new correct one.. By the time I got the food to her, the fries were cold and the burger just ok. She was appreciative, but it didn't turn out the way I intended it too.

Sarah has been very busy at college, and doing well. Classes, tutoring, work at the Biology department and DeVos for Athletic Training and Meetings for Relay for Life have been keeping her schedule full. She loves to watch the Tigers and is probably sad like me, that they lost yesterday. It sure is coming right down to the wire!

I worked on Wednesday and had a decent day. Sadly, Hailey didn't feel well. She slept most of the day. I worked a few hours on Thursday too. I am supposed to work again on Monday.

Choir rehearsals are going well. The kids are singing on Sunday, and the adult choir will join us to sing the doxology at the end of the service. Chimes are coming along nicely. Orchestra is pretty much a brass trio right now. They sound very nice. First service we play for is for Reformation.

Yesterday marked the return of our Thursday lunches at church. The quilters and church staff eat together. I made hot dogs and there was chips, veggies with dip and apple cake! It was great. I also started a new quilt. The pattern is around the world. There is the single moose in the middle then the rows of colors and moose surround it. I think it is going to be great! I will take another picture when it is sewn together. I had to lay all the pieces out then pin rows together. Next week I will sew the squares into rows and then rows into the quilt, then add some borders! Probably not all in one week though!

The Prius informed me that my tires were a little low on pressure, so Jeff helped me a LOT by getting the tires filled to the proper pounds and bought me a digital tire gauge. Itis pretty cool. We checked again this morning and got Mary all set to drive to the "thumb side"! My car is pretty smart!

Mary is supposed to be in the Cedar Springs Red Flannel Days Parade tomorrow. Unfortunately, it is supposed to rainy and as of right now, no one has contacted her as to where the parade starts, meeting times etc... We still don't have a schedule! How crazy is that! Mary will be tutoring English on Wednesdays and teaching cello lessons on Fridays. She is thinking very positively lately of all the past events and circumstances. I am so proud of her!

Matthew helps keep the house straightened and looking nice on a regular basis. He is practicing with the tennis team and was the stage manger on duty yesterday. He says he doesn't really like the stage managing, he'd rather build the sets and work the floor. Once the soccer season is over and the other manager is back full time, Matt can switch back to that. He played the trumpet last night at orchestra, and boy if he just practiced a little his range would be out of this world. It sure is nice to have a trumpet in our group! Matt is a cool kid.

Looking ahead, I am making chicken crescents for dinner tonight. Brandon will be joining us. It is good to feed college kids a home cooked meal! We were going to the Red Flannel festival in Cedar Springs, but with the weather and lack of info, we may not go. I guess you have to wear red or you get thrown into the festival jail! Tomorrow is the Michigan vs Michigan State game too. I will want to watch it. Next weekend we are in Minnesota for friend Mark's wedding! Yay!

Until the next update,

Gracie!

Rainy Mondays

It is a rainy Monday, a great day to blog, play farmville, finish laundry and catch up on things I didn't do on the weekend. It looks like I might get Mondays off from now on. The regular Monday nurse has worked every other monday since the birth of her baby and is ready to go back to once a week! That means I would work Wednesdays and Fridays. That works out fine for me.

I spent Saturday watching football, preparing for Sunday School, vacuuming and doing laundry including sheets and towels. I was glad that Michigan pulled off another win! Indiana was tough! GO BLUE! Can you guess that I am a Wolverine supporter? Now on to the Florida game...Tebow really got hit hard and now I hear that he was knocked out for a few minutes and that CT scans confirm a concussion. He is lucky he didn't have a worse neck injury. \o/! I was also impressed that Urban Meyer stayed behind in Kentucky to be with Tebow and Family. Glad they are all back in Florida. Hope he recovers quickly! Go GATORS! Certainly was great that he played so well even with the flu and the team was so far ahead when he got injured. I wanted to teach myself how to play Dutch Blitz, but I have still to try to play after reading the directions. Sounds like a good idea for a rainy day, hey? Sarah is still in the lead in our football pick group. Jeff and Mary are only 2 behind and Snow White is following right behind. I did pretty well this week, but didn't do well last week, so I am catching up. Dan did great for his first week. Matt is ahead of me, so that will make him happy.

Sunday was very nice. The weather was sunny and breezy. The service was nice and the choir sang really well. I must admit I was a little worried, but the Holy Spirit ignited us for a good outcome! My Sunday School class was small yesterday, but we had a nice time. I even made homemade playdough for our class. I love small kids, they say it like it is and are pretty darn smart. Jeff and I went out for lunch at Winter Inn. I had a delicious burger and Jeff had teriyaki chicken sandwich. I love the steak fries too! Youth was supposed to meet for frisbee golf, but only a few came out. We waited a while and then decided to try it another time. Jeff and the one youth that came went through the course. While at the course I received a message from Mary that the bus forgot to pick them up at the choir retreat. They would be home 2 hours later than expected.

Bowling came next. I actually bowled pretty well~124, 103 and 140. My average is at an all time high of 120! Our team did well, but still lost all four points. Jeff established his average this week which changed the outcome of our score. The past two weeks they had an average of 120 and his actual average after last night is 153. So we had to subtract 33 pins from each games total. We still had a lot of fun!

The singers were home by 8 pm. We left the van in the parking lot for Mary. They had a really nice time and I guess that choreography went well. We continue with fundraisers for their Florida trip. I am already tired of all that..I hate selling stuff, especially if it isn't worth the price. So this last one we are just donating to the cause. I don't want any of their sausage and won't ask anyone else to buy it either. Tomorrow is a pop can drive. That is usually pretty profitable.

Mary will be tutoring English, starting a Sweet Adelines group at the high school, playing cello for the Messiah at the local community college and was just recently asked to give private lessons to a freshman cellist. Still waiting to hear about the library position.

Sarah called and left a message this morning. It is windy and cold in Holland. The winds remind her of being at grandma's house durning hurricane Charlie! She is thriving at Hope.

Tonight is chime team, kids choir and Senior Mystery Trip meeting. I will be at the musical events and Jeff will go to the Senior Meeting. Tomorrow is PT for me and Matt gets a physical so he can play sports at school. Work on Wednesday and Friday, Quilt on Thursday, I am bringing the main dish. We are back to our joint lunches. Friday Mary is going to visit Brandon and will bring him home for the weekend. I am making chicken crescent dinner for when they get home. I should mention that there is NO SCHOOL on Friday.

Guess that is about it!

The Rest of the Story

What do you think of that very cute, large Curious George? Matthew won him at Universal Studios throwing a baseball and knocking down a stack of blocks off the table. George has been a secret since our Florida vacation until last night when Matthew gave him to Sarah for her birthday. Sarah found George when we all got in the car to go for dinner at Logan's Roadhouse. Sarah's friend Kara came along for the fun! She is very nice. The dinner was very good, except Mary's steak came overdone and she had a wait for a second, which was better, but not exceptional. Sarah even got a Yeehaw for her 20th birthday. We went back to Sarah's dorm and watched the Tigers and Project Runway. We weren't happy with either show outcome, Tigers lost and the designer we thought should go home, stayed. Oh well, we had a lot of fun watching TV together. Sarah was going to show us how to play Dutch Blitz, but all of us were distracted and we forgot. I hope I can figure the game out, I bought one for us too! Seems a little complicated with all the piles of cards. Before dinner and before George was discovered, Sarah opened her gifts, Tiger photos, Tiger shirt and the Dutch Blitz card game. I took cupcakes for her to share with her friends. We took some home to eat, since we were all full from a big dinner. We got home late, after midnight. It was a great celebration!

Now you probably want to know the results of the play auditions this week. It was a horrible ending :( This plays director has never really liked Mary and unfortunately removed her from any chance for a lead role. We are all very sad and disappointed with her decision. I for one cannot understand how a student like Mary, with 10 plays under her belt and superior ratings from state theater judges, gets cut from the play. When Mary spoke with the director yesterday, she was told that her reading was too severe, formal and stiff. What planet does this lady live on? Evidently she wanted someone with more fire and "spit". Hmmm....I would think severe and fire sounds compatible to me. I truly believe that she just has her favorites. Mary wasn't allowed to read for the lead roles on Thursday and only read for the flighty mother. That in itself is crazy. So, Mary made the decision to remove herself from the play all together, cast or crew. She doesn't think she was going to be cast at all Monday morning, but we won't know. It is probably best that she doesn't work with the director at all. (FYI-she almost had a mutiny during the last play she directed). Infact Matthew isn't sure he wants to work crew for this lady who shafted his sister. Even many many students at school are just flabergasted that Mary wasn't in the running for the lead. Finally as a parent, it is very difficult to watch your daughter get shafted by a department that she poured 3.5 years of commitment and dedication into. For the past 3 years, everyone said "you are great" or "you might deserve a lead, but you are not a senior" or "wait for your senior year". So she did with grace and integrity. Then her senior year, they decided to change things up, no musical, got a new director and away with all those words of wisdom through the years. Shafted big time! But as my wise mother reminds me, That's show biz! Guess it is good she will pursue education next year in college. Thanks for letting me vent...I needed it!

On a happier note, Mary is going to tutor English to some adults that need to pass a test to get into a program at the community college. She hasn't heard about the job at the library. I will encourage her to apply at some other places too. Because she won't be in the play this fall, she will be able to go down to University of Michigan to hear Brandon sing with the Uof M Glee Club. I don't think I posted that great news before now. That is quite an accomplishment! I am planning to go listen as well. It should be fantastic, especially since it is in the Auditorium on the Hill. It has perfect acoustics! Mary has begun a group of girls at the high school for Sweet Adelines. Brandon is coming home next weekend. I am sure that he and Mary will have a good time watching TV and more than likely, singing barbershop.

Mary and Matthew had to get up early this morning to go to Show Choir camp. They left at 0610 and won't be home until tomorrow late afternoon. During the retreat, they will learn the choreography for their songs and do some group strengthening activities. Mary had fun last year as Sarah did the year before, and Matthew was looking forward to a good time this year with his sister.

I have become a college football maniac. I am watching the Michigan/Indiana game on ESPN360 while I blog. Michigan is down by 3 at the half...The Gators play later tonight against Kentucky. I will be rooting for Florida to win. I have a Big Gator decal proudly on a window at our house now! Go Gators! GO Blue! Oklahoma isn't playing today. Boomer Sooner! Hope College football isn't on TV much. Sarah is working a cross country match today. She loves athletic training!

That is all...have a great weekend!

Gracie

Sarah Turns 20! Happy Birthday!

Sarah turned 20 years old yesterday. I really can't believe it! Seems like she was just a baby. We will be going to see her on Friday for dinner and presents! Sarah said she had an amazing day and it has finally hit her that she is no longer a teenager!I really wanted to post this yesterday (even had the birthday cupcake border for her birthday), but I have been working early and long hours. I was just exhausted last night!


Jeff's plane was delayed Monday. He finally got a new flight for Tuesday which worked out better, since picking him up at 0100 and going to work 4 hours later would have been really hard. I worked 3 days straight starting at 0500! Tuesday was a short day, 3 hours. The others were long 12+ hour shifts followed by choirs on both Monday and Wednesday. I am off now for several days.

Mary has had auditions all week. Today is supposed to be callbacks. Usually phone calls are placed Thursday evening offering parts to the play. Mary is hoping for the lead role, but preparing for the worst, since this is a new director. Last years promises from the last director are null and void. Matthew is working crew and also been practicing tennis. He wants to practice with the team, but has to wait until after his physical next week. This weekend Mary and Matt will be going to Camp Geneva, near Holland, for Village Green choreography camp!

Well, I was planning on going to quilting and I have to prepare for church orchestra tonight, so I had better finish this post.

A mom of a new 20 year old!

A Calm Before the Storm

We had a nice weekend, including great weather. I finally got some paperwork accomplished. Worked best late at night. So I have Chimes and Kids Choir done and even cleared off my messy desk! The brat sale at the football game was successful. We sold out of everything except water by the end of the 4th quarter. The Yellow Jackets won too! Mary played her cello (strings quartet) for the rehearsal and wedding the past few days. Everything went well. Matthew has been playing some tennis this weekend. He goes to the courts and practices serves and hits the ball against the wooden board. He wants me to play, but my feet have really been hurting with what I have diagnosed with plantar fascitis. Jeff will be a better partner for him. I go to the doctor on Tuesday to see if my feet hurt for a different reason. Bowling tonight was like a rollercoaster. I bowled a 99, 173, and 106. At least I was able to bring up my average a little, back to where I left off last season.

This week is packed full: I work Mon 12 hours, Tuesday 3 hours, Wednesday 12 hours, all starting at 0500! After work on Monday I have kids choir, chimes and I pick up Jeff at 103o! Guess I won't get too much sleep! Mary has auditions on Tuesday and Wednesday and hopefully call backs on Thursday. Choir on Wednesday. Matthew wants to practice with the tennis team after school. His friends have invited him to come. He is committed to doing techie work with the play too, so that will take priority. Friday we go to Holland to have dinner with Sarah and celebrate her 20th birthday a few days late. I have her gifts to take down with us. I am looking forward to seeing her again. Mary and Matthew go on an overnight trip for Village Green Saturday morning and come home Sunday late afternoon. Oh I forgot to mention that Church Orchestra is supposed to start on Thursday. Still have to organize the music for that.

That makes me tired just thinking about it. Should go to bed soon so I can get up for work.

Good Night~

Grace

What Can I Say?

Not much has really happened since my post on Tuesday. I have enjoyed being home, but find myself waiting for the kids to come home. Have lots that I can do, but other little "chores" keep from accomplishing my music planning and organizing. I still feel like you really need to be "in the mood" to get that done. I am trying to get motivated. So I am getting a little done at a time. Have some creative ideas for another event and worked on that idea, then went job hunting on the web. Then time just zips by! Got my schedule for next week. Well, I work Saturday evening 6 hours, then Mon 12 hour day, Tuesday 3 hour early morning and Wednesday 12 hour day. Whew!

School is going fine the kids. Mary and Matthew got their yearbook today. It is nice. Some nice pictures of Matthew and Mary. One of Matthew pitching and Mary is seen in orchestra pictures and theater pictures. Mary hasn't heard about the job yet. She does have a wedding gig this weekend with her Simply Strings group. She is also planning some more trips to Uof M. One will be a trip to a Big 10 Michigan Football Game! Yay! The other one will be for a U of M Men's Glee Club Concert. Brandon auditioned and was selected to a part of this exquisite group! I'd like to go and listen too. We'll see. I think that Mary is going to be a Wolverine, as long as they accept her as a student, but we know that will happen~! Sure hope she gets that job!

Sarah turns 20 next week! I can't believe it! Seems like I just brought her home from the hospital on a warm sunny day in Japan. We will be going to take her for dinner and presents next Friday! It will be nice to see her and hug her! School is going well for her and she is busy all the time! Besides her classes, she works at the biology department, AT clinic hours and tutors. Don't forget working at the athletic events! She will be travelling to Lansing with the cross country team tomorrow.

I have tomorrow to work on the music and Sunday School preparation. Senior Mystery trip brat sale is at the home football game tomorrow and I signed up to work. Saturday is free till 7 pm when I go to work. Jeff doesn't get home until Monday night. I will pick him up late Monday evening after a long 12 hour day at work, kid's choir and chime team! I will be tired. Maybe Matthew will drive.

That is all...

Grace

Kudos!

Sarah: Has her first "student" on Thursday as a tutor in biology

Mary: Has a possible job at the Greenville Library..will have to wait and see!
Might have a job tutoring English on the side. That would be great!

Matthew: Is selling lots of candy bars for fundraisers.

Monday's Over!!!

Monday was quite a day! The kids had a good day at school, but my day at work was long and stressful. I am not going to disclose anymore information, but I was really glad to get home! I was also sad to hear about Patrick Swayze's death. He was a good guy and dancer.

Mary threw in some frozen pizza, while I was getting ready for kids choir and chime team and they were doing homework. My kids choir went really well and I finally think I have an idea where we are going this fall with our schedule. Chime team had a good turn out. Eight people showed up and 2 returning members were absent. I probably won't have to ring and direct this year! That is helpful. Now I can plan more appropriately! We will start off simple. Last night it was so hot in the balcony, that we met in the narthex for a meeting, then we played a simple C scale and learned about timing and techniques.

Went to the store for milk and advil and a few other items. Watched America's Got Talent Finale. I really like the Fab Five cloggers and the Recycled Percussion. Those are the shows that I think belong in Vegas. There were a few good singers, but not for Vegas.

Important information- I have contacted the orchestra director about the procedure for getting entertainment books in your area. Please hold your purchase for Mary. We'd appreciate it.

That is all for now...Have a good day.

Grace

Bowling Season Begins!

Our fall bowling season started tonight. I didn't bowl so well. My scores were 98, 139!, and 98 with an average of 111. The only good thing is that I should be able to beat my average at least for a few weeks, and my high handicap will help the team start off ahead. Jeff is in Miami until next Monday, so he won't have scores to post yet. Not sure how they will determine points and wins/losses while he is gone.

Mary took Brandon back to college today and had a nice visit there and drove home solo without any problems. Yay! They had a nice weekend together and really enjoyed the barbershop concert last night.

Looks like Sarah had a fun time at the beach as a dorm outing. It certainly was a perfect day for it. Matthew went to our Youth groups swimming party this afternoon and had a nice time. I got lost going to pick him up. Finally I realized where I was, and got there just a few minutes late. First day of Sunday school went well. I really liked my class.

Tomorrow is work in the morning and afternoon, and then kids choir and chimes. Sure hope I can get things together! I am way behind in the planning stage. I am usually all planned out to at least Christmas by now.

Guess that is all for now...GO TIGERS...they won today!

Grace

A Great Saturday!

This morning started out with a village green car wash. Eventhough it was work, the choir earned about $500! Matt stayed the whole day, and Mary and I worked in the morning. Mary had plans and I had a wedding to attend.

The wedding was very nice and I must say the cake was delicious! I had 2 pieces. It was nice to chat with people from our church and friends from the community.

After I got home, Matthew and I watched the first 3 quarters of the Michigan/Notre Dame game. Actually I saw the 2 and 3 quarter. I was glad they were winning when we left for dinner. We had a nice dinner together. I was waiting for Sarah to report the UM score the whole time. Not a message. I called Mom when I got home and I heard that Michigan won in a spectacular ending.. winning by 4 in the last minute. Wow! Yay! Go Blue!

Matthew and I went back to church to decorate my classroom. It looks pretty nice and I am ready for my first Sunday School class of preschoolers and kindergarteners. I filled up the Prius with gas and now I am home for the night. Mary is going to take Brandon back to Ann Arbor tomorrow and I want her to take my car. It has better gas mileage and I trust it more than the van. I hope they had fun at the Barbershop concert tonight.

Jeff is super busy. He had the wedding today and of course church and bible study in the morning. The real kicker is that he is going to Miami for Air Force duty tomorrow and he has to be at the airport just after noon! That is cutting it pretty close. He is already packed and will be gone until the 21st.

I am not sure of my week's schedule yet, but know that I work on Monday and then have kids choir and chimes monday evening. I am not planning much, until I know how many singers/ringers I will have. Mary has auditions this week for Pride and Prejudice and has a wedding gig this weekend. So, yes we will be busy!

That is all...Have a great SONday!

Grace

Hooray!

Just a quick annoucement~ Mary was selected to be the president of the Village Green for the 2009-2010 school year! Congratulations!

Tomorrow is a car wash fundraiser for the Village Green Singers at Dr. O'Donalds office on M-57 from 10a-3pm. Those of you in the area, come out and get your cars washed and support our choir! Thanks!

Wedding in the afternoon. Then Mary and Brandon are going to a Barbershop Concert Saturday evening. They have been looking forward to this for months! I am happy for them.

Sarah has asked for the game Dutch Blitz. I am going out to look for the game this afternoon. For now I am going to plan for Sunday School and Choirs!

That is all for now!~

Grace

Good News to Pass Along

Sarah called my early this morning to tell me that she had her interview for a biology tutor job at the student resource center. The interview ended with the job offer at the end. Hired on the spot! This is a paid position and I think a good way to keep up on knowledge you have already learned. She hopes it will expand to include Anatomy as well. We are very proud of her.

Choir tonight and work tomorrow. School is going well. More info on coupon books coming soon!

Grace

First Day of School

The first day of school of school was a success. Mary and Matthew made their lunches last night and we up and ready to go by 0700 with a good attitude. I got up and made muffins for them. Mary will be driving to school this year and has a couple other friends to pick up on the way to school. Another year of school has just begun. It will be crazy too. Senior year events, Village Green and Orchestra trips along with all their fundraisers! Don't forget about classes!

Eventhough it was a cool foggy and cloudy morning, I went out golfing with my buddies. My game was not at it's best. Remember my great score of 49 a few weeks ago? Well today I shot a 64! My woods were off and I actually liked my irons (wierd). So as I try to look at the bright side of things:

• I used my driver several times today (I never use my driver). I hit the ball with the driver as well as my 3 and 4 wood. Thus I will try to use it more often!


• My irons were good! I really like my 2-4 irons. I got some good distance on them, unfortunately after a few tries.


• I had some good putts. I putt one in from off the green! This one, wasn't as lucky!


• We all had a lot of fun and enjoyed a pizza buffet lunch.

Beat the kids home from school. I was anxious to see how there first day went. Mary and Matthew had a good day, told me about their teachers and even came home with fundraiser merchandise~ Chocolate Candy Bars and Entertainment books. For those of you in other states and locations, you can order your book online and Mary will still get credit for the sale and help her earn a trip to Chicago with the GHS Orchestra (We will send out info on how to do that later). The candy will be ongoing for the Village Green trip to Orlando, Florida/Disney World ~April 28- May 2. There are plenty of other fundraisers going on all of the time. I hate it, but I guess it is necessary. I filled out a few forms and then they got their homework done. Oh, and by the way, Mary said the Obama speech was no big deal. She remembers the main message as: Work hard and stay in school, if not you are not just letting yourself down, but your country too. (paraphrased).

Matthew got a haircut and we had toasted ravioli for dinner. Then we made a trip to wal-mart for a few things..The good news is that we bought only what we needed! Hurray!

Well, I guess that sums it up...Tomorrow is Worship committee and I really want to plan for my musical groups as well as for my Sunday School class. Choir starts tomorrow evening as well.

Goodnight from Greenville,

Grace