Bowling Bowling Bowling

Our team bowled six games today.  Three at 4 pm for next week, then three more for our regular night of bowling at 6:30 pm.  I had a pretty good night - 125, 125 and 135!  My second set of games started poorly with an 83 but came back and  got a 124 and 141.   Jeff had been bowling well all season.  Both of his series were over 500! So we won't bowl next week.  Randy and Norma will be on vacation and Jeff and I will attend a special afternoon Thanksgiving service. We have a bye week next week, so we hope our scores will be higher than our team average.  We won 3 tonight and should take 3 next week too.


No school tomorrow!  It is deer season opening day (for rifles).  We can all sleep in! Hooray!  Matthew has Sound of Music Rehearsal from ~1-5 pm.  I cancelled music rehearsals and will need to work on laundry, of course, since I put it off all weekend!  Jeff gets a free meal at Golden Corral tomorrow, so we will go to Grand Rapids for one of our meals.

 That's all folks!  Enjoy your week!

Gracie

UMWGC Concert = Success!

We had a delightful time with the Cory's travelling to and from Ann Arbor for Mary's Concert.  Upon our arrival in Ann Arbor we met up with Brandon and we all ate a delicious Chinese dinner before heading to Hill Auditorium.  I am not sure if I mentioned this before, but Hill Auditorium is one of two halls with perfect acoustics.  The other is Carnegie Hall. Brandon picked out some great seats.

Mary was simply beautiful! She looked very happy and confident singing all of the songs.  She even sang in Russian!  I had hoped to record at least some of the songs, but they made an annoucement before the concert that videos are strictly prohibited. :(  After the concert we visited downstairs and took some pictures. We stopped by Mary's room so Jeff could see where Mary is living.  We left Ann Arbor around 10:30 pm.  I think we were all pretty tired but conversations continued to keep us smiling and laughing. The two hours went by pretty quick.   I look forward to returning next week for the Men's Glee Concert.

For now, it is really late and I had better get some sleep. Need to be at church at 0830.  I am teaching, accompanying a trio and singing with the Praise Team.  Then there is six games of bowling in the afternoon and evening. No school on Monday...fun fun fun!


Gracie

Check  out the photo album for more pictures

Caught Up?

I finally got got up on the computer work that was piling up.  What a good feeling!  Matthew helped me clean up the house and I even decided to try and upload videos on our Wilhelm Family Photo website. First you have to click on the Family Photo link on the right. Then you should click on the videos tab.  I have uploaded movies of Matthew's Fall Village Green Performances. Once they load up, I will try to put up the video from Nykerk at Hope last weekend. If this works out well, you can expect some video from Mary's Women's Glee Club Concert!  Another good way to see some videos is on you tube.  I searched Nykerk and found songs from this year, last year and even several years ago!  I suggest you watch Nykerk on you tube because their quality is much better and you can get a better feeling of how it sounds and looks! It is awesome! You can watch UM Glee Clubs too!
www.youtube.com

Tomorrow I really need to do some laundry done, buy some groceries, practice the piano and be ready for Sunday School before we leave for Ann Arbor at 3 pm.  I have another project that I would like to get done, just don't know if I will have the time.  Matthew will be staying home tomorrow, as there is tech rehearsal for the school musical. He can't miss!

Sunday is our first Sunday School Christmas program rehearsal after church.  Then we prebowl at 4 pm for the next week, and bowl for real at 6:30 pm.  I will be bowled out!

No School on Monday! It is the opening day for deer season with rifles.  Bow hunting has been ongoing for the past month.  Crazy hey!  We will be going to the closest Golden Corral for a Veteran's Free Meal!  Maybe Jeff should wear his uniform! LOL!

Better check on those videos.  Enjoy the videos on shutterfly!

Grace

What is a Veteran?

Veteran: 1) a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field. 2) a person who has served or is serving in the armed forces.


Happy Veterans Day to all those who served and served their country.  We especially give honor to Jeff Wilhelm, Bob Scherer and Lori Wilhelm who all serve in the United States Air Force. Matthew has shown a little interest in the USAF Academy.  He may look into what is involved to apply there.

Many restaurants have offered "specials" to the Veterans today, so we decided to eat out.  Applebee's offered a free meal to the Veteran, so that was out destination until we arrived and the line was out the door. I guess it was a 45 minute wait.  Matthew had to be at the high school in 30 minutes, so we scrapped that idea and tried Big Boy.  The hostess asked someone if there was a military "deal" tonight and although there wasn't any advertising they assured us that the veteran would get a discount.  Tonight was Build a Burger bar and Jeff was going to get half off.  Ok!  Soon after we sat down and began to eat, our waitress informed us that she talked to the main manager and that you could only get the discount if you were wearing your uniform! Forget that you showed your military ID.  Sorry.  Oh we will give you half off dessert! Great, thanks.  Let's think about this a minute, will all veterans have uniforms to wear??? Don't you think it would be easier to fake a uniform than a Military ID?  Big Boy failed. We won't hurry back there for a while. In the end, the waitress never asked what we wanted for dessert and just gave us the bill, so we didn't get discount dessert either. (to be continued...)

The BIG EVENT of the evening was Matthew's induction into the National Honor Society.  It was a very nice program and Matthew looked very handsome. He received his certificate and a NHS pin. We are very proud. After the ceremony, I went down to the stage and wanted to look into the pit that is now open for next weeks musical, Sound of Music.  Matthew arranged that he would take us down into the pit and show us around backstage.  He was even going to let me stick my head up from the pit, but I said just being there was a treat. He also showed us the scenery he has been working on. It was a lot of fun to have Matthew show us around the place he loves to spend time and show us what he has been building the past few months. I am excited about seeing the show!  It was a nice evening!

(continued..)  We decided to try Applebee's again at 8 pm. This time it was only a 15 minute wait.  Jeff got fried shrimp, at least a dozen, and Matthew and I shared a basket of chicken tenders.  Jeff and I each had a frozen drink too.  It was all very tasty and they didn't take back their offer like Big Boy.  We even got a little pin with a flag in the shape of an Apple! Hooray!

I spoke with my nursing office and cleared the air and talked things through. I feel a little better and will be at work tomorrow.  As frustrated as I get, I can't think of anything else I'd want to be other than a nurse.

My latest quilt is turning our very nice. I like it a lot. The other quilter's are working on other projects, including a greenville theme quilt for a craft show at our church next weekend. I think it is quite nice.

Saturday the Cory's will be riding along with us to Ann Arbor to attend Mary's concert. We will have dinner with Brandon and then enjoy seeing and hearing her sing!  Can't wait!  One week later, it will be the Men's concert and I will enjoy that one as well.

Lastly, I am a little worried about Sammy.  He has been hiding in places he rarely goes.  We have found him sleeping in Sarah's room upstairs and in Jeff's office next to the desk.  Today the doorbell rang and he didn't even get up or bark.  That is really not normal for him.  He did play with us this afternoon and has been eating his food and drinking water.  Will keep you updated.

Better get off to bed.  Staying up too late and tired the next morning.  Have a good rest of the week.

Gracie

What a Day!

I woke up hoping for a productive and great day!  I knew my favorite episode of Matlock was going to be on, so I fired up the computer and got ready to enjoy my show and catch up on Facebook and email. Not 30 minutes into the show, Jeff let Sammy in from outside and then my morning went sour!  The dog stepped in his own "stuff" and tracked it into the house! So out came the cleaning supplies for the carpet, kitchen floor and even the dog!  I had it cleaned up, including the backyard, by 3pm.

In the meantime, I did enjoy a nice lunch with my "golf buddies"at Mancinos.  I ordered a French Dip sandwich and was it ever good!  I brought half it home and will take it to work tomorrow instead of PB. We had fun talking about bowling! We will prebowl next week for the following week since Randy and Norma will be travelling to TN for Thanksgiving.  Hope we can stay in first place.

I got a call from my nursing agency questioning the order I wrote last week.  I am always nervous sending in paperwork, knowing that the office people will find something to complain about. A few days ago I got a packet of papers one of which told me that I hadn't turned in an inservice due 10/31.  When I called to inquire which one it was, they only wanted to send out a new one to replace it.  I insisted to know which one I hadn't done, and she confessed that she was new and hadn't sent the October inservice out.  So why should the nurses be made to feel like they are not completing their work!  I love taking care of Hailey, but the paperwork is driving me crazy!  As much as my patient means to me, I need to get a job that will challenge and use all the skills I have.  I keep plugging away at applications and pray that the right new job will come along soon!

Later this afternoon, we refinanced our house.  We are pretty happy that our payments will be lower.  I made manicotti for dinner and then worked several hours on Quicken, updating and clearing our purchases from the past few weeks.  What  a job!  Still not done, but I got a lot accomplished.

Ended the evening with TV and computer fun!   Tomorrow is work and choir. Better get some rest.


Gracie

A Great Weekend and Exciting Times

Our weekend turned out to be a really nice one. Mary got home in time for a taco dinner and  catching up a little before Matthew and I headed off to Holland for the Nykerk competition.   It was nice to have Mary home and listen to her stories and adventures.   So proud of her, she has been running a mile 3 days a week!  How awsome.  As the semester is coming to an end, she will be writing a play as her final for her freshmen American Family class.  She has some really cool ideas, now just has to put them on paper!

While Mary attended a surprise birthday party and Jeff was at a Habitat for Humanity concert, Matthew and I went to Holland for the popular Nykerk Cup competition. We arrived 45 minutes early and was just barely able to find a few seats together. The show started nearly 30 minutes late so they could find everyone a place to sit, besides the aisles and doorways! They even had younger people sitting on the floor in front of the judges! The show was excellent as always.  Matthew and I thought the the Class of 2013 pulled ahead in points, but in the end, the Class of 2014 were  declared the winners!  Guess we should be happy the Even Year won since Sarah will be an even year graduate, next year!  However, many of her friends are 2011 grads and were coaching the 2013 team, so we were kind of pulling for them.  You could probably find out some information on the Hope site or maybe even see and here some of the perfomances on You Tube.

Sarah is doing fine.  We had a late night snack at Burger King and then enjoyed some brownies that Sarah baked. They were delicious!  She has been super busy at school and just finished her season of high school football at Zeeland West HS.  She was sad when it came to an end.  Although the fall sports are finishing up, Sarah will continue to help the HS trainer until the end of the semester. I received report from her this morning that she got a 91% on her test from last week!  Yay Sarah!

Mary and I talked for several hours after I got home from Holland.  It was fun just to talk and watch stuff on YouTube together and have a lot of laughs.  We even stayed up to witness the time falling back from 2am to 1 am.

Church and Sunday School was great.  My lesson went better than I expected and the kids choir sang "El Shaddai" just wonderfully!  Good tone, good diction and good pitch!  Kudos, girls!  Mary and Matthew got some shopping done before we enjoyed lunch together at Applebees.  Brandon and his dad picked Mary up by 3 pm and got back to Ann Arbor safe and sound.

Bowling was great too.  Jeff bowled a 213 last night and had a 550 series!  WOW!  I had a good game of 138. Our team won 4 points last night and will remain in first place!  We had our regular McDonalds meal afterward and then enjoyed apple pie dessert at home together! Yum!

Today I still need to go grocery shopping, work on the computer and maybe even walk the trail with Jeff. Kids Choir and Chimes tonight.  This week, we look forward to Matthew's induction into the National Honor Society and Mary's UM Women's Glee Club concert on Saturday! I can't wait!

Guess that is all for now...Have a great day!

Gracie

PS: You can watch the GHS vs Muskegon Football Game by clicking on the Watch GHS Events link to the right.  Maybe you can see the snow falling!

BRRRRR!

That is how we felt at the football game Friday night.  It was quite the game though and I am glad that we went.  I had 4 layers on including my winter coat with hat and hood, gloves and warm socks.   I was still freezing by the end of the game. Oh, I should tell you that we had SNOW flurries throughout most of the game.  Seems a little early for the white fluffy stuff to be falling from the sky.   Matthew didn't dress as warmly as he should and was  shivering at the end of the game.  I wrapped him up in our blanket for the walk home.   Matthew sat with friends and youth leader from Grace Lutheran in Coopersville.  They came to cheer on the team.  Matt's friend Mitch is on special teams, especially the kicking team.  He made a great first play of the game when we kicked it off to Muskegon and it bounced off of their player and Mitch got the ball that ended with a touchdown! It was a pretty even and exciting game until the last quarter when Muskegon pulled and head and didn't look back, winning by 3 touchdowns. I am still proud of our Jackets, they had a great season!

While Matthew was spending time with his friends at Applebee's, Jeff and I watched the "new" Karate Kid. Jeff has seen it before, but it was my first time.  I liked it a lot.  Jackie Chan is cool.  Matthew got me hooked on his shows when he was younger.  I thought Will Smith's son, Jaden, did  a good job too! 

I am off to bed, anxious to see my girls tomorrow.  Mary will be coming home in the morning and will spend time with her before Matthew and I head to Holland for the Nykerk Competition.  Mary has a party and Jeff will be getting ready for church.  Should be an exciting day.  Don't forget about Football! Better his the sack...I am pooped!

Grace

Almost the Weekend!

This weekend is going to be a busy one! Thought I had better blog a little before all the excitement begins tomorrow!

First I will spend the day with my little princess and give her good care and lots of hugs.  She sure is a cutie.  I say that a lot, but it is true! After work, Jeff, Matthew and I will be going to the second GHS football playoff game here in Greenville.  It is supposed to be very cold, so I will need to dress warm and bring a blanket or two! Greenville plays Muskegon.  Our Yellow Jackets have been playing great, so we hope that they will keep their momentum!

Saturday Mary will be coming home in the morning with her friend Brandon and his family.  She will spend most of the day with us and then attend a family party with Brandon in the evening. That works out great since Matthew and I will be going to Holland to see the annual Nykerk Competition. It is a night of competitive singing, acting and orating between the classes of 2013 and 2014. All the participants are women. The men are there as supporters/cheerleaders. Upper classemen women coach their resepective classes, even vs odd!  It proves to be a great experience.  It will be crowded, so we will have to arrive an hour early!  First come first served!  Should be home before midnight and then maybe some late night talk with my Wolverine.

Mary will be able to come to church with us on Sunday and hopefully get to have dinner together before heading back to Ann Arbor.  Won't be too long though before I see her again.  We will attend her fall concert on November 13th, as a part of the University of Michigan Women's Glee Club. A week later I will travel back for Brandon's concert with the Men's Glee Club! Of course there will be another night of bowling on Sunday evening.  We are currently tied for first place. Hope I can at least bowl my average~120!

Next week, Matthew will be inducted into the National Honor Society on Thursday, November 11th, Veteran's Day.  We will have to eat early, since many restaurants offer free meals to Veterans! The following week is GHS' Sound of Music! I will probably go to the press review on Tuesday and then work and watch the Friday Show.  Then Thanksgiving will be right around the corner!  Wow!

Here is a few updates:

• My complex ovarian cyst is resolved!  All in the clear for now. Thanks for your prayers.
• Mary won a $20 gift card to Espresso Royale in Ann Arbor for her very cute Halloween door. Congratulations Mary!

That is all for now...

Grace

Did You Vote Today?

Jeff and I have casted our votes and now wait to see what will happen in the state of Michigan and our beloved country.   Our polls in Greenville were not  busy late this morning and early in the afternoon.  Many people are disgusted with the ongoing mudslinging of the candidates against each other.  I suppose some people are so mad they just won't vote.

Jeff and I picked up the Kia this afternoon and then Jeff drove it to Holland and I turned around to go to my appointment. My ultrasound went well. The cyst remains but looks like it may have shrunk a little.  Will know more next week.   Last time Jeff and I talked on the phone he was on his way back with "Matt's" van.  It will be nice to let him drive to school again.  0645 is so early!   I know why Matt is so tired in the morning.

As for tonight, I will work on some laundry and maybe do some "paperwork" on the computer.  Think I might go rake some leaves in the front yard while it is still light out.

Better bundle up, it is getting cool outside.

Gracie

PS: Mary participated in the dorm halloween "door" contest.  I think it is so cute.  She hopes to win $20 to Espresso Royale!

This Carousel Doesn't Stop!

I have decided to start blogging while I am baking cookies in a new way! The experiment is baking cookies dough in a cupcake pan. Be right back, the buzzer just rang!...Two more minutes...

Last week was so busy!  I worked on Wednesday and Friday, so everything else had to get fit in with the time left. The biggest task was making Matthew's costume. I cut out the pattern Wednesday night, sewed  a lot at quilting (thanks for your help Norma!), stopped after the hood was on. Put in the very large sleeves on Saturday after cleaning the kitchen and finishing the laundry that had been getting done a load at a time.  In fact there is still a load left and it is time to start all over! Watched college football too of course.  Too bad the Wolverines lost.If you read last night's blog, I finished the costume at 5:45 pm and the Trunk or Treat started at 6pm!  Talk about "cutting" it close!

Some really great news! The  Greenville High School Football team won their first playoff game last Friday. It was a great game.  They play again at home this Friday against Muskegon.   Come on team! You can do it!  How exciting!  However, during the game we got a message from Sarah that "her" car's power steering stopped working on the way to a hockey game in Grand Rapids.  I drove the Prius and Jeff drove the van to GR  late Friday night, saw the end of the Hope hockey game and then let Sarah take the van and we came home in the Prius.   Matthew came along with us. The Kia was towed to a local auto repair.  This morning we found out it was the power steering belt that broke.  We suspected that, but wanted to be sure there wasn't any other damage.  Praise the Lord for small miracles, large ones too!  Even those that are disguised at coincidences.  We should get the car back today and be back to normal tomorrow!

As for the rest of the week, the merry go round continues:

• I have an ultrasound tomorrow, a follow up from six weeks ago, where they discovered an ovarian cyst. We will see if it went away or decided to stick around!
• I am working two days  a week now, pretty much every Wednesday and Friday.  That will help with the planning, I guess.  There will be some days that I will have to take off for certain events.  
• Choir rehearsals, kids and adults, Chimes and Orchestra. 
• Mary is coming home for a few days this weekend. It will be nice to have her home.
• Have to keep up with the mail, bills and such too. 

Some good news to finish this blog~Matthew has been accepted to the National Honor Society and will be inducted on November 11th, Veteran's Day!  I am off to get two tickets to the Christmas Concert by the GR Symphony.  They come to Greenville every year!  I can't wait.  Have to get tickets early so we get good seats.  They go fast. Oh and by the way, the cookies are cooling and sinking, but I think they are baked and will taste good. Think I will add some frosting!

Better get going!

Gracie

DON'T FORGET TO VOTE TOMORROW !!!!!

Patience

We had a fun SONday.  Good church, orchestra played well and I made it through a difficult Sunday School lesson (Jeroboam and Rehoboam).  Then played for Long Term Care services in the afternoon, finished Matthew's costume just in time for Mt Calvary's Trunk or Treat! Spent the past three hours posting pictures.  Take a look at the Wilhelm Family Photos. Be patient I will blog more later.

Happy November!

Gracie

PS:  You can watch the Choir Concert!  Click on "Watch GHS Events" then Fall Choir Concert 2010.  Be sure to pause my music first at the bottom of the right column!

Today's Overview

Today was an eventful day!  So many things got accomplished. I am very pleased.

• Our piano finally got tuned. The tuner said it was pretty bad off.  That isn't any news to me, but I wanted to wait until the hot humid summer was over.  

• Matthew's Jedi Knight cloak is cut out after having to refold the 11 yards of material (thankful for Jeff's help), and pin the pattern not once but twice since it requires lots of panels.  Next is marking and then sewing and LOTS of gathering! It should be pretty cool when it is done.

• Got my new glasses this afternoon.  I was a little worried during the week, that I wouldn't like them when I picked them up since they are quite different for me.  But once I put them on, I remembered why I liked them!  Super nice! Plus I can see better too!

• Cooked supper, cleaned the kitchen and even started the laundry! What the heck??  Supper was pretty good and it is nice to have the sink cleaned up.  Matthew carved one of his pumpkins.  This year is Batman.  He will carve a second one soon!

• Tonight's BIG event was the GHS Choir Concert.  It was very nice.  It was the first year of a new choir program.  No freshman girls choir or JV singers, instead there is the Girl's Choir and Men's Choir in addition to the Concert Choir and Matthew's group, Village Green Show Choir.  He looked so nice, danced and sang well and looked like he had a lot of fun.  He is out at Big Boy with friends, a tradition after each concert and/or theatre productions. I have posted a video on my Facebook and should have pictures in the album soon.  Mary sent me a pictures of the lovely Ann Arbor fall leaves too. Thanks Mary!

That is all..I am liking the bullet form blog these days.  Helps me organize my thoughts.  Don't plan to keep it that was for long though. Thanks for being patient with me!

Gracie

PS:  You should be able to watch the concert at the "watch GHS events"  link in the right column under Look and See!

Concert Tonight

We are off to the GHS Choir Concert.  Here is Matthew is this year's new uniform:

And Time Flew By

Seems like even with the greatest ambitions,  there just isn't time to get everything done.  Here are a few thoughts for today:

1.  I am glad that we are home instead of Jeff having spinal surgery this morning.  We are looking into other treatment possibilities and very thankful that his symptoms are better.
2. I had hoped to have Matthew's costume cut out, but it looks like it will be on the late night list for tonight.  Have to get going, so it can be ready for Sunday. Lots of sewing tomorrow!
3. Computer work just goes on and on.  Looks like we will not be using charter email much longer.  Please use @sbcglobal.net mail instead of the charter one. 
4. Kids choir and Chimes begin in 30 minutes, so I have to be ready for that too.
5. Bowled twice yesterday. Once in the afternoon for next week, and once in the evening for regular week's bowling.  We won 3 points last night.  We will  see how our meager scores from the afternoon pre-bowling hold up next week. For now we are in first place.
6. Had a very nice time at our neighborhood open house. Got to visit with all the families on or around Cass Street.  
7. Piano will get tuned tomorrow.  It sure needs it! 
8. Village Green will perform in costume/uniform tomorrow night at the first choral concert of the year.

Better get going!

Gracie

So Fun-So Busy-So Awesome!

It has been over a week since my last post. Been wanting to blog all week, but didn't have the energy or the creativity. I have the energy on this rainy gloomy Michigan day and have time while I sit and watch college football. Sit back, relax and enjoy our story!

LAST FRIDAY my men and I went to the last home high school football game.  This also happens to be the all awaited "Lights Out" half time show of our Marching Band.  It was really cool to watch as usual. Unfortunately, a fight broke out behind our bleachers and disrupted the people around them.  The situation was controlled quickly without a lot of attention.  We won the game in overtime!  Great win for the Jackets!

SATURDAY was homecoming for the Wilhelms. Sarah came home around lunch time and we spent the afternoon playing the Wii, shopping  and having KFC for dinner per Sarah's request.

I left for Ann Arbor to pick up my Wolverines at 5 pm.  Amazingly I was there by 7:15 pm and they were waiting for me on the corner to throw in their bags and jump in the car to come back home.  Stopped at Jimmy John's for supper and then headed toward Greenville.

Got home by 10:30pm and then Mary Matthew and I went to Meijer for more groceries.   The girls wanted Korean food.  Needless to say we stayed up late and prepared the bulkoogi and got to bed  after 2 am!

SUNDAY was special since the whole family was back in church worshiping together. The congregation surprised us with a Pastor Appreciation presentation after the service.  Jeff and I still have to open the cards since he was pressed to get ready for military duty the next day. It will be fun to sit and open them together without a rush.

Later in the afternoon was a surprise 50th birthday party for Brandon's dad.  He was definitely surprised and we enjoyed celebrating with the Cory family.  Bowling league takes place on Sunday too, so we arrived a little late after the party and bowled the last two games. We split the points with the other team. Norma tells me we are now tied for first place with the same number of wins, but 1 pin behind the other first place team for totals.

MONDAY Jeff left very early in the morning for Shaw AFB, SC.   He would be gone all week and have his annual physical exam and testing.  I guess he was there for a joint weather conference too.  Matthew was at school all day, so the rest of Monday was Ladies Day!

The girls got up early with me to go to my last appointment with my foot/leg surgeon.   I did get one more shot in the left foot to eradicate any leftover inflammation. After a few days of a sore leg post cortisone, I am glad to report that my leg feels pretty good, and my foot pain is virtually gone!  Very happy that I had the procedure.  If my right foot acts up again, I would certainly consider having  that leg "fixed" too.

Then it was the girls turn.   They both got a very nice hair cut and look beautiful.   Lunch was simply delicious at Olive Garden.  The waiter liked the girls I think (why wouldn't he?) since he kept bringing us lots of mints after our meal. We went shopping most of the afternoon and purchased some great stuff.  Mary bought boots and material for halloween costumes for her and Brandon.  She is going to be Cleopatra and he will be Augustus Caesar.  Sarah bought herself a GPS system for "her" car.  It is super nice and I am a little jealous.  Sure would be nice to have one. I think Jeff wants one too.  Hmmm,  Christmas is coming! Then I decided it was time for me to have an iPod. I had been saving up some money and found a great deal at Best Buy.  Got the 4th generation iPod Touch with a camera, nice ear buds, two covers and a charger for the same price I would have paid at wal-mart for just the iPod!  I love to get a good deal and so does Jeff!

We got home around 5pm and got to work on the Korean meal. With great teamwork, the yakimondue, bulkoogi and rice was ready to eat at 7:30 pm.  Brandon came for dinner as he enjoys the meal as well. (He was the special sauce maker since Jeff wasn't home.)  I made enough for an army so the girls to take it back to college to eat.

TUESDAY came too soon. Sarah left before lunch to get back to Hope College.  Unfortunately, she left her share of the Korean food behind.  However my fresh baked cupcakes made the trip and were enjoyed by her and her housemates.

Mary helped my pick out new glasses.  The frames are really different for me, but I am exicted about getting them and trying something new! I was going to just have new lenses made for my current frames, but they would have had to take my frames. At this point in my life, I cannot function without my glasses. Mary spent the afternoon on homework and sewing the costumes.  They turned out pretty nice.  I think it is pretty awesome that she can sew things without a pattern!  I grilled steaks for dinner.  Believe it or not, I didn't burn them.  They even had pink in the middle!

By 6 pm I was driving Mary and Brandon back to University of Michigan. It was quite a nice ride back for me.  Mary was quizzing Brandon for his political science class and I learned a lot of new things!  It was amazing all the things he knew about other country's governments.  I told him that I would call his prof and tell him that he deserves and A as he knew all of the information!  Too bad I don't know who to call! LOL!  Dropping off was almost as quick as picking up.  I stopped the car by their dorm and they loaded up their arms with all their stuff and off they went with their share of the Korean food and fresh cupcakes.

Since it was only 8:30pm, I high tailed it to Brighton and stopped in at JoAnn's Fabrics.  Matthew wants to be a jedi night for Halloween's Trunk or Treat and I had a pattern but had no material.  Good thing I stopped, as they had the eleven yards of brown material for the jedi cloak. Now I have to get to business and sew the crazy thing.  The drive home wasn't too bad, home before 11:30pm and plenty of time to rest for work on Wednesday.

THURSDAY I decided to take the forgotten Korean food to Sarah in  Holland. She was soooo happy, as that is pretty much her favorite food!   Took a few other things she wanted and treated her to Wendy's lunch.  It is always nice to spend time with your kids no matter how long or short that time is!

I was back in Greenville by 1 pm.   Spent time with the quilters and have come up with a new idea for my next quilt.  It is about time to get back to sewing with my buddies!

Thursday evening I went to the GHS faculty concert.  It was also a fundraiser for fine arts in our schools.  The concert was absolutely wonderful. All the music teachers from Greenville Public Schools performed.  We have such talented teachers to instruct the kids of Greenville. I am so proud to have known many of them.  Our kids have really been blessed to have them.  Mrs McDonough, Mrs Chapman and Mr VanHouten,  had awesome singing solos, jazz, classical and  pop. Piano playing from the awesome Kayle Clements and a Flute duet including Mrs Gould who made it look effortless. What can I say about the Lord's Prayer played by Mr Ayres on his trumpet--Wow--Awesome.

In addition to the faculty, they welcomed back a GHS alumni who played her cello as a solo and then played it to a silent movie about Jack the Ripper.  She wrote the  score and played it in person.  Quite impressive. Sure wish I could have ordered a DVD of the event.  It would have been worth the money spent.  Instead I did purchase a Christmas album and wish I had visited the cellist's table and bought one of hers too.  Oh well, can't do everything!

LAST NIGHT Matthew and I went to Lowell High School for the last football game  of the season. What a game!  Greenville beat Lowell for the first time in 15 years with a score of 35-21!  Way to go Jackets!  They are in the playoffs now and I will be anxious to see who we play.. East Grand Rapids again?  We sure looked good  last night.

TODAY I have been getting things accomplished at home.  Jeff should be arriving around supper time.  I am working on laundry, care packages, blogging, cleaning, preparing for Sunday School.  We are supposed to attend an Open House in our neighborhood. It would be nice to get to know our neighbors.  We don't see them very often.  Mt Calvary is having a spaghetti supper from 5-7. Hope we get to attend.   I like spaghetti.  Guess I can go even if Jeff isn't home yet.  Matthew doesn't like spaghetti.  All eyes will be on the TV tonight when the Sooners play Missouri.  Let's go Oklahoma!  They are currently #1 in the BCS.


 JUST A FEW UPDATES

• Jeff has decided to cancel surgery on his cervical spine; very thankful for improved symptoms and hoping to consider other less-restrictive options. It has been amazing to see God at work!  I saw him suffer with numbness, tingling and pain with muscle atrophy this summer, only to witness his symptoms disappear over the last weeks before surgery plus the ability to lift his large suitcase with his weak arm just before he left on Monday.  Miracles are always happening.  Praise the Lord.  Jeff is glad to avoid fusion surgery that was scheduled for this Monday.  Keep praying for continued healing.  Thanks!
• Other good news!  Jeff' passed his physical requirements for the Air Force and will be up for promotion to Full Colonel this week!  Wouldn't that be great!  Let's pin on the eagles!
• I have an upcoming ultrasound next week as a followup after being diagnosed with an ovarian cyst. All of my other blood work and tests are normal.  We will see if it has shrunk or disappeared or if some sort of treatment is necessary.
• Haven't been turned down from any job applications recently.  Still hoping to get an interview at Metro Hospital in the Special care Nursery.  Have applications open at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital on their pediatric units. I continue to plug away at my continuing education classes concentrating on Maternal Child nursing. 

• Coming to Orlando in Spring 2011!  University of Michigan Men's Glee Club! Mary's best friend Brandon is a bass in this very talented group. It is worth attending!  Mary may have the chance to travel with the Women's Glee Club when they perform in the northwest united states.  Watch for more details!
• Sarah is participating at Hope's annual Relay for Life.  If you would like to donate to her group's fund, contact her at s.wilhelm23@gmail.com. She is also selling "I  Love Hope College Athletic Training" t-shirts for $10 each.  I have one and they are very nice.  All proceeds go to Relay for Life. 

That is the latest at the Wilhelm household.  Next update...soon??


Gracie

HAPPY 21ST BIRTHDAY LORI!

Quick Report

1. Work has been very good lately, at least at my patient's house.  The agency is still driving me crazy.  They called my again today to ask if I worked on a certain day. Evidently mail sent from 319 Cass Street isn't delivered in a timely fashion because they are always missing something. I am getting tired of this and wonder if there is a conspiracy!
2. My vision has gotten worse, but I already told you that. Need updated lenses and would really like to get some new frames.  I have had these for nearly three years!  My biggest complaint is that is hard for me to see the music on the piano, especially going from page to page.  I have to try to adjust my eyes quick and keep playing.  The doctor says I may need a pair just for playing the piano.   We will trial the new lenses first and see how that works.
3. Had a nice meal at Jimmy's Pub and Grub tonight with Matthew after dropping off stuff at Goodwill and getting the Prius washed.  That was way overdue!
4. Got a text from Mary.  She is at a hockey game!  How exciting! I have been following the game online.  Tried to listen, but it breaks up a lot, so I watched the stats of the game.  Wolverines won.

Guess that sums it up.  Jeff should be home around midnight. Yay!

Gracie

Another Week Begins!

The Weekend:

• Enjoyed an overnight stay with Mary at the University of Michigan.  I experienced eating at the E. Quad cafeteria. The food was pretty good!  Mary and Brandon had a wonderful time at the concert. I had quiet time, watched TV and the news.  Lots of coverage of the MSU/UM game.  Lots of Spartans in town by Friday afternoon and lots of activity into the night.  Many students camp out on couches in the "Diag" to protect the Michigan 'M' from Spartans wanting to steal it.  Evidently it has been done before. I also found out that a parachuter would deliver the game ball by dropping into the stadium! Mary and I had a nice lunch together before I left around 1330. I got home just after the football game started.  Needless to say by now, the Wolverines lost terribly! I don't know what was wrong with them...So the Spartans won and life goes on. Mary did get a video of the the parachuter and has posted it on my blog!  Take a look at the links column and click on the video from Mary! (If you click on the video once it starts playing, it will take you to youtube and you can see the video with a larger picture.)
• Saturday night Jeff and I attended "Spectrum of Stars".  It was a fun evening of talent, some good and some not so good.  Matthew worked as part of the crew, working backstage and raising and lowering the  backgrounds and screens with the flies.  He also sang as part of Village Green. The event was a money raiser for the Greenville Hospital, and I would say there was nearly  a full house!
• Church and Sunday School went very well. My lesson about Solomon went better that I anticipated, kids choir debuted today for their next season with "Yes!", and I played for church and received several compliments.
• Jeff left around 3pm for the Michigan Pastor's conference in Traverse City. I opted not to go, preferring to stay home with Matthew and work a couple shifts with my patient. I don't know why the pastor's conference has to start on Sunday afternoon, when we finally have a chance to do something together as a family.  
• Bowling went pretty well. We lost the first game and then won the 2 and 3rd games and total points.  I  bowled over 100 each game which is always my minimal goal. Jeff's blind score (10 less than his average) 162 wasn't bad. Norma and Randy had stellar 3rd games: Norma 200 and Randy a 221! Woohoo! 
• Football Frenzy results: Jeff remains in the lead with Leslie close behind.  Dan, Matt and Mary are safe in the middle. Eric, Grandma and Grace are bringing up the rear. Oh well, I am having fun!

What is ahead this week?

• Work: I am working Monday,Wednesday and Friday.  Matthew works everyday after school on the set.  Jeff will be at the conference until Tuesday evening.  We will have plenty to do when he gets home, since he will be away at military duty next week. 
• I have an eye doctor appointment.  I can tell my glasses just don't work like they used too.  I wonder how much they have changed. 
• Orchestra meets on Thursday, so I had better remember what the plan is for the next time we play. Kids Choir and Chimes meet tomorrow night and choir on Wednesday. 
• Sarah will be coming home late Friday or early Saturday for a long weekend.
• We hope to be heading back to University of Michigan for the Iowa/Michigan game.   I have never been to the Big House and think it would be pretty fun.  I would especially like to see the Marching Band! Let's hope that they win! Then we will bring the Wolverines home to spend a long weekend as well.  It will be nice to have them all back for a few days.

Guess that will keep me busy...especially since there is the usual work..laundry, cooking and keeping up with my list!  Matthew was a big help this afternoon.  He raked the leaves, mowed the lawn, trimmed some overgrown bushes and vacuumed the house. Whew!  He is such a wonderful son!

I better get some sleep since I need to work tomorrow.

Night!

Gracie

Departing Update

I figured I should blog before I leave for University of Michigan tomorrow.  Mary and Brandon are going to a concert and needed a vehicle.  I look at it as a way to visit my wolverine and also help them to have a fun time too!  Wonder if I will beat all of the football game traffic?? NOT!

So let me think of what has happened lately:

• Matthew had a productive retreat for Village Green.  He said everything went really well. 
• Won all four points in bowling this week.  I bowled around average. 
• Had a good week at work.  My patient is a real cutie pie!
• The three of us saw a sneak peak showing of  "Secretariat"~It was great.  Jeff says Disney has a winner! Captivating!
• Got some important things done on my ongoing list...yay!
• Applied for a few OB positions.. Pray for God's will to be done...Hope I get a call or even  an interview!
• All of my blood work came back normal. Praise the Lord.
• We have been having beautiful Michigan weather!  I love a blue Michigan sky!
• Attended the Alpha Family Center banquet tonight.  It was very nice.  Life is Precious!
• Matthew has a paying theatre gig tonight and Saturday.  $$$  
• I play for Church on Sunday...LWML Sunday at MCLC.  Sunday School lesson is Solomon.
• Looks like I will be going to the Big House next weekend! Exciting!

Guess that is all...Now to fold the laundry...woohoo!

Gracie

A Nice Visit

There was no school yesterday.  How nice! First I picked up Matthew from his friend's house then went to get the Kia washed and cleaned before we took it to Sarah in Holland. Matthew went to work on the set at the high school and was very encouraged at the progress so far. I had a doctor's appointment which concluded with orders for some fasting labs.  Matthew and I went shopping later in the afternoon for groceries and secret gifts for the Village Green trip.  What a busy day and it wasn't over yet!

 

Jeff came home from work and we got ready and headed for Holland in the Kia for Sarah. We will bring home the van.  Matthew was pretty sad about the whole idea as he had become quite attached to the car.  Instead of going to Hope's Campus, we went to Zeeland West High School football game.  Watched Sarah work at the game and met her supervisor who had only good things to say about her. No injuries while we were there. After the game we went out for pizza together and then did the big switch at campus security. Jeff scraped the old sticker off the van and Sarah put the new sticker on the car.  Matthew drove the van and said he liked driving the van, so he is feeling better about the whole situation. All in all, it was a nice visit.  Jeff drove home since it was getting pretty late and Matthew was tired and needed to get up early for the Village Green retreat this weekend.

Unfortunately, we didn't get up early enough.  I thought the paper said 0715, but it was really 0615!  I woke Matthew up thinking we had lots of time, when really we had none!  He got ready really fast and I drove him there in my pajamas and a sweatshirt.  No one was angry, just glad he made it!   Thank goodness.  I should know better, choir trips always start crazy early!  Hope he is having a great time and learning the dances without any problems.

I worked for six hours today and had a nice time.  My little patient was so glad to see me! Gave me a big bear hug when she saw me!   Of course later she grabbed my glassed and my hair and thought it was hilarious!  I don't get mad, she doesn't know any better.  I love her very much.

Jeff and I had dinner at El Rancho and  are now watching football on many different channels.  Wished things looked better for the Gators.  Come on Gators get up and go! Have a start on my Sunday School  lesson about Absalom.  I don't have to tell how he died to my young class. That is probably a good thing!  That story leaves such a visual in my head from when I was a little girl.

Tomorrow is church,  playing for long term care chapels and then bowling.  Wonder if I can stay above 100?  Wish I could go to the FREE concert at Hill Auditorium tomorrow afternoon.  Both Glee Clubs and the choirs from the school of music will be performing at 4 pm.   It should be fantastic!  I look forward to hearing both choirs in November.  Matthew gets home tomorrow around 5 pm. He will be tired for sure.  Hope he doesn't have too much homework!

That is all.. Have a great SONday!  As long as we have the SON, everyday can be great!

Gracie!

PS  We are under a frost advisory! Brrrr!

Another Milestone!

Today I watched my little boy drive away in the "new" gold car to school for the first time.  I did better than I thought I would.  He was so happy! Needs to get a permit for parking at school. He also went to the drive thru bank.  Tonight he is at his buddy's house for dinner, video games and fun.  I drove him and it was a good thing, as the house was very easy to miss. I think they will have a really nice time.  There is no school tomorrow, so I won't have to pick him up until around 11 am.  He works crew, building the set from 1-4 pm, then we have to go shopping for his trip to Geneva for the choreography weekend with Village Green.

We hope to go to Zeeland HS West's football game tomorrow night.  Sarah is the Athletic Training student, so it would be nice to see her at work.  She would be glad to switch out cars and suggested a dessert date with the family after the game. That sounds great! I have one more load of laundry to do tomorrow along with the computer work I have been putting off for the past month (or more!). Working on some job applications and have a new strategy.  I am going to take several labor and delivery CEU courses. Maybe that wlll help in getting in  an Obstetrics job.  I am also considering taking a fetal monitoring class to show that I am dedicated  about learning another specialty in maternal child nursing.   We will see if it works.  The cover letters are going to kill me.  Need to try something different.  Jeff thinks I should keep it shorter and more concise.   There are things that I would like to explain, (ie: had lots of jobs related to moving 10 times).

Saturday Matthew leaves for his trip and I will work for a few hours. Think I am leaning toward working after dinner because I would like to watch a game with Jeff.  The Sooners play at 3:30pm and Gators at 8 pm.   Michigan plays on ESPNU, so I won't be able to watch that one anyway.  Need to prepare for Sunday School too. I really like my class of upper elementary kids.

Guess that is all for now...Have a great weekend!

Gracie~ GO GATORS-SOONERS AND WOLVERINES!  LET'S GET ANOTHER WIN!