A Flyover Blog

My Week So Far

This picture has absolutely nothing to do with this post; I just liked it. I thought you should know. It has been a very long week already... and it's only Thursday. Our little iHorseClub team have been working away on adding content to the new website. Kids are finding us every day from all over the world, so we're very encouraged. Building a website for kids is a lot different than throwing one out there for adults - there are all sorts of child safety and protection laws that help protect kids, but make reaching them tough, too. My gorgous niece, Whitney has joined the team as our resident artist. She's designing some very cool things for the website; she does awesome work!

We've had lots of family happenings the past few days, too. At the moment, we're on baby watch with Cousins Addie and Jason, who live across town. They are expecting their first. She's had a rocky go of it and was put on total bedrest last Friday. We're expecting an early arrival - possibly this weekend - so I'll keep you posted. Prayers for mom and baby would be appreciated.

Mitch and I absolutely love Springfield. We're close to everything and there's never a dull moment. On a personal note, I would like to say I've enjoyed the past few days, but I have been in a lot of pain that does not respond to drugs. Period. The only way to combat it is to take muscle relaxers and wear several heat patches along the damaged nerves for hours at a time, which I've been doing. Not very comfortable in the midst of summer, let me tell you. I'm not sure what to do. I have been patient with this injury for months, but I'm exhausted. I'm out of patience. It has been 1 year and 4 months since I was injured in the hospital. I am still waiting for them to respond. So far, nothing.

Sorry I'm not so sunny at the moment. It's been a bad day.

Thursday Thirteen - Week 44

On the Fourth of July, my SIL Vickie married her Jr. High Sweetheart, Dan. It was a perfect ceremony and I thought I'd share some of the pics with you in this very special Wedding Edition of the Thursday Thirteen. There are a few bonus pics.

The theme for this wedding was tropical and the ceremony was held outdoors. I had the honor of taking pictures. My hubby, Mitch, (Vickie's big brother) performed the ceremony. Here, he's walking everyone though the rehearsal the evening before the big day.

I had to get this shot of Mitch and nephews Nick and Blake. Aren't they handsome?

We woke the next morning to heavy thunderstorms. Here, Vickie and her Maid of Honor, Susan hover over the computer at Main Street Salon, watching the weather radar. Still raining. Would it clear by 10:30?

The only thing cheery in the salon that morning was the painted wedding toes, so I headed over to the site of the ceremony.

I snapped this pic of Dan and his wonderful kids before the ceremony. The rain had stopped, but threatened to start again any second.

Gorgeous wedding cake, huh?

Vickie was escorted by her boys.

Ominous sky. Mitch was prepared to do the short version!

Then right in the middle of Nick and Lindsay's duet, an amazing thing happened. The sun came out. Then we had a wedding!

The beautiful lady with the silver purse is Phylis, who reads this blog regularly!

Cutting the cakes.

Family Portrait.

Dancing Under the Arbor.

 

Molly makes a surprise appearance. She loves Dan... and all the attention!

Wedding Rings.

I hope you enjoyed the wedding   ...and they lived happily ever after.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Welcome Baby Bonnie

We added another member to our family this past weekend besides my great new brother-in-law, Dan. This is baby Bonnie, an 8 week old Schnorkie. (Mom's a Schnauzer; Dad's a Yorkie.) She was born May 10. She's going to live with my brother David and his wonderful pet-loving family. This little girl will never have a lonely moment again, Michael and Whitney will see to that. I hear Sandy stayed up with her the first night and sang her lullabies.

They brought her over to meet us Friday evening. Sam was mesmerized by her - thought she was the coolest thing since McDonald's french fries. Buddy was a typical Yorkie; he pretended she didn't exist for a couple of hours, then curiousity got the better of him. Welcome, Baby Bonnie!

Dan & Vickie

Conratulations Dan & Vickie!

Meet my new brother-in-law. What a doll. Aren't they a sweet couple? Friday's July 4th wedding was perfect, although a nail-biter right up to the last minute. The culprit? Rain. Hours and hours of rain. And, yes, the wedding was outdoors. It stopped 45 minutes before the ceremony then the sun came out... right on cue.

(More pics later this week.)

Sad News

My brother, David, called me Friday with sad news. Their beloved Lhasa, Lady, passed away. She was 14 and had been in failing health for some time.  She was the sweetest little girl you've ever met. Even when she could no longer see, she greeted everyone with a happy tail wag. She was a dear little spirit and we will miss her terribly.

Adventures in Shopping

Dan and Vickie are getting married next month and the wedding theme is tropical. Gonna be a blast. I'm taking pictures, which I'm really looking forward to. So I've been shopping for something to wear - you know, something beachy. You'd think that would be easy... but you haven't seen my closet; it's full of denim and neutrals. Last week, I was in a shopping mood. Doesn't happen very often. Shopping is another one of those skills I don't excel at, kinda like cooking. (FYI: Vickie is a world-class shopper.)

I was passing by one of those pricy, full-service ladies stores, saw a sale sign in the window and thought I'd make a pass through, just to see what was on their beach radar. I walked in and was greeted by not one, but 3 eager sales clerks working on commission in a depressed economy. Instantly, I felt like the lone, dumb wildebeest stumbling into a pride of hungry cheetahs. I tried the "I'm just looking" line, but they brushed that aside and began to stalk me around the store, ambushing me with garments they insisted I would look "stunning" in. I quickly tired of that game and decided to change tactics.

I faced them and said, "This is the deal - I'm going to a wedding July 4th. It's tropical."

They squealed.

"Not so fast," I said. "I don't do pastels and I don't do Skittle colors either." They skattered and returned .075 seconds later with a collection of gaudy neon frocks.

"No," I said flatly. The boldest clerk swore Retro was in and produced a gauzy emerald top with flowy sleeves. It was heinous but I needed time to regroup so I ducked into the dressing room and tried the stupid thing on. When I emerged, there they stood looking hopeful. I handed it back and said, "when I put this on I heard Cher singing Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves." Their faces fell. They were weakening. I saw my chance to escape.

"Listen," I said. "When I hear the word 'tropical', the first thing that comes to my mind is sand, as in sandy beach. Sand comes in lots of pretty colors. Bring me something the color of sand."

Clearly, I had presented them with a challenge. They split up and started rifling through racks. I slipped unnoticed out the door. Wildebeest - 1. Cheetahs - zip.

I'll keep you posted on my search.

Life Is Good

So how was your holiday weekend? Ours was terrific. I don't think we could have wedged one more thing into the weekend.  Oh, it rained every single day, but that didn't matter. This house is so much fun I didn't miss all the outdoor activities.

I didn't see a single tourist over the weekend either. Not one. Kinda strange. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this was the first holiday I've lived in a "normal" town - as opposed to a tourist mecca- since I was 12. Gotta tell ya, it was heaven. Oh, I'm still battling poison ivy, the yard still needs work and we're still looking for a few things I packed really good, but we're 90% settled in and we love Springfield. David, Sandy, Michael and Whitney came over for a movie marathon/x-Box fest yesterday. What fun! We popped corn, ate pretzels and M&Ms and watched 2 fun and 1 perfectly rotten movie, (cough- 30 Days of Night - cough) but it didn't matter, because we were having a good time. I'm looking forward to holidays in this house; they're gonna be a blast.  Thanks for spending Memorial Day with us, guys!

Settling In

Thought I'd better post a progress report. We've been in the new house a week. The boxes are mostly unpacked, though I still can't find anything. My arm and hand have been killing me, so I'm a bit behind my own (self-imposed) unpacking schedule.

Those of you who know me won't be surprised at this - we were in the house two whole days before I discovered that I failed to pack the eating utensils and the cooking utensils, too. Not high on my priority list. Good thing we haven't sold our old home yet; I went back earlier this week and got them. There are still some odds and ends at our home in Tiny Tourist Town. I hope to get all those packed up and moved this week.

Sam, our Teddy Terrier, is adjusting slowly. We pulled him off the doggy prozac yesterday, but he saw a fly today (he's terrified of flies) so we gave him another pill this evening. Buddy, our Yorkie, loves this house, thinks we should have moved years ago. Other than a bad spell our first night - he lept off the couch, hit the hardwood floor with a thud and bloodied his mouth - he's been a champ.

In the six nights we've been here, 2 of those were spent under tornado warnings - and the tv hadn't been hooked up yet, so there was no live radar. We muddled through with radio storm trackers and frequent phone updates from my brother, David, who lives in Nixa.

We absolutely love this house. I found the camera, so I'll post some pics later this week. You're all invited to stop by on your next trip through Springfield!

Moving Update

Thought I'd give you a quick update on our move. We're into Packing: Day 5 and so far - knock on wood - I haven't misplaced anything important, like asthma meds or underwear. I am still sane. So is Mitch and Little Buddy our Yorkie. However Sam, our Teddy Terrier, has been doing a dead-on impersonation of Dakota Fanning in War of the Worlds. Poor little guy, he doesn't deal with change very well, so our vet put him on doggie Prozac until we get the move behind us and get settled into our new home.

Mitch's mom is holding steady. She gets in-home therapy 4 days a week and most days her thinking is generally good. I'm hoping she regains her strength and some cognitive function quickly. Only time will tell.

Sorry for the uneven posting, but I'll try to keep you updated on our progress. I planned to post some interior pics of the house but, unfortunately, I packed the camera really well. Soon as I find it, I'll snap some pics and give you the grand tour. Guess that about covers it. Time to pack another box...

You Can Find Us Here

Mitch snapped a couple of pics of the new house. This is where we'll be living for at least a year. I love this little place; it's very cozy and the street it's on looks like a park. Now that Mitch's mom has been diagnosed with dementia we really can't live over an hour away from her any more. And with gas prices being what they are, the daily drive back and forth to care for her was costing a fortune. This gorgeous little house puts us just 15 minutes away from her. We're only 3 blocks from our favorite park, and very close to my brother's family.

 

Once we get settled in, we'll put a fresh coat of paint on the walls in our home in Tiny Tourist Town, lay new carpet and put it up for sale. Homes here are in demand, especially since so many of them have been ruined by the recent (and ongoing) floods. The neighborhood where Mitch and I have lived for the past 14 years is established. It has lawn care, a strong Homeowner's Association and a community pool. We hope it sells quickly.

This past month has been chaotic and my MIL's health forced us to make some changes... but I think this move to Springfield will be good for us.