Disney News

     Great news was shared with us yesterday!! My nephew announced his engagement to his girlfriend, Paige.  Danny proposed to her Thursday night in Disneyland. How exciting!! For those of you who prayed for my nephew while he was serving for the Peace Corps in the Philippines...well, this is him!!  It is so wonderful to see him this happy and healthy after his debacle overseas.  Your prayers were heard!!  We all thought that the two of them were just going to Disneyland for a fun trip;we were all pleasantly surprised to hear of their engagement. :0)  Now we get to have another family wedding!!

Danny and Paige (who is happily showing off her engagement ring)

In other Disney news...

     Katie and Freddie took the kids to Disney World this week.  She recently switched nursing jobs, so they celebrated by having some family time in Florida.  Last Sunday at 6:30 AM (a bit early) we received this text picture of Megann and Mathieu with a caption that read, "Let the magic begin!"  They certainly were excited to do just that!!

     Later in the week we received more pictures with Pluto as the center of attention.  Our first Golden Retriever was named Pluto after the Disney character, so Katie sent these two pictures as a tribute to our beloved (and still missed) dog, Pluto!!  Such cute photos!

Disney was certainly full of adventures this week!!

These Days...

     Life has been very busy these days...and very sad at times.  On Saturday one of my colleagues, Bobbi, lost her battle with cancer.  It was a tough battle for her these past few months, and I know that she will be missed.  Four of her family members work for Darrell, so he will join me at her service on Friday.

Two of our custodians, Diana and Bobbi (in the yellow)  

She hated having her picture taken, but I was able to snap this shot of her about 18 months ago prior to her cancer.

     Knowing that Mom O. is fading away is difficult as well.  It's been weighing on our minds a lot these days as we have been spending a considerable amount of time with her.  In addition to her lung disease, she fell and broke her hip in two places.  She is confined to a hospital bed as the doctors would not operate due to the serious risks involved.  Her lung capacity is less than 10% now, and this recent fall doesn't help matters for her.  However, she still really enjoys having company and maintains her sense of humor at times.  I know that she isn't very comfortable due to her breathing and the pain as a result of the double break, but she continues to hang in there.

Here I am with Mom O.

 After a recent visit to the hospice house, Cheryl, Mike, and I visited our local Cherry Berry.  

It is SO yummy!!!

 Don't you just love kids?!  

Cute little red-headed Rachel was being a little shy when I snapped this photo while a very excited Luke came to show me his new tractor last week.  

My first meeting with Jamison...what a doll!! 

 A sign of spring in our yard

Someday I'd like to lay by the warm fireplace too!!

Happy Birthday, Michael!!

    Happy birthday, son!! We can't believe that you are 28 already!!  It doesn't seem possible that you are nearing the end of the third decade of your life!!  You have grown to be such a wonderful person, and we are very proud of everything that you have accomplished and the man that you are today.  You are a caring, smart, and talented person who is loved so very much!!

Dad and Michael, one week old

Grandma O. and Michael, eight months old

Darrell and Michael, two years old

Darrell, Michael (4), and Dani (10 months)

Darrell, Michael (10), and Dani (6)

Lower Falls/Yellowstone National Park 

  

Dad and Michael

SHS Sabre football days

Dad, Michael, and Lori

UMM Cougar football days

Michael was happy to receive new golf shirts today.

Michael cleaning up his driver's license after dropping it into the salsa at dinner tonight!!

From his first birthday cake...

to one of his favorite desserts, fried iced cream from Mexican Village...

to his other favorite cake...red velvet. :0)

Michael and Amber enjoying a piece of birthday cake. 

Benji was wondering if he was going to get any cake.

Happy birthday, Bud!! We love you very much!!

The Hunger Games

     Today was a lot of fun!!!  A bunch of us gathered together for the long-awaited opening of The Hunger Games.  We have been planning for this weekend for a long time, and the movie didn't disappoint us.  Good thing I bought our tickets ahead of time as the theater was packed!!  Our gathering began with lunch at Zaffiro's; it was very delicious!  Lots of laughs were enjoyed by all as well!!

 Alison, Bridget, Deb, and I were the first ones to arrive.

 Followed by Heidi and her daughter, Rachel, and April and her oldest daughter, Bailey...

Heidi, you look so good, and it is so wonderful that you are now in the cancer SURVIVOR category!!

      Alison's daughter, Brandy, joined us as well.  She is growing up so fast!! I still remember the day that she was born; it doesn't seem possible that she is in 9th grade already!!

     REALLY??!!  As we were waiting for our lunch, a movie was playing on a couple of the flat screens in the restaurant.  Our table just happened to look at the TV at the same time to find a nude man in a yoga position talking on his cell phone.  What the hell?!  The other flat screens were showing the NCAA basketball tournament, so the TV entertainment options were quite extreme!!  We couldn't quit laughing and were rather distracted by the whole situation, so we asked the waitress to turn the channel.  (It was more for the sake of those around us as we were laughing so hard!!)  We never did find out the name of this movie!!

Bailey sported a "Katniss look" for the occasion.  Very cool!! :0)

 Here's the whole gang in the theater in plenty of time to find enough seats to enjoy the movie together!! :)

 Having fun before the movie started

A great time was had by all...thanks, ladies!!

Michael's England Trip

     Darrell and I decided that we are going to live vicariously through Michael!! He recently accepted a new position in the company he works for, Cummins, as a project manager. For the past four years, he has been working there as a mechanical engineer. Last week he was already sent to England for six days, so he sent us a bunch of pictures from his trip.  Granted, he was busy with meetings and had to give a big presentation, but he had time to do some sightseeing.  Lucky him!!!!  

     Another highlight of his trip was being able to put his knowledge of the German language to use with some of his European co-workers.  He must have been excited as he called three times while he was out of the country!!  :0)  He was also excited when he visited University of Cambridge and some of the pubs!! I can't provide captions for all of the pictures, but I do know that the first one is Michael :) at Stonehenge.  I recognize Big Ben and Burghley as well.  

STONEHENGE

     "Stonehenge is surely Britain's greatest national icon, symbolizing mystery, power and endurance. Its original purpose is unclear to us, but some have speculated that it was a temple made for the worship of ancient earth deities. It has been called an astronomical observatory for marking significant events on the prehistoric calendar. Others claim that it was a sacred site for the burial of high-ranking citizens from the societies of long ago." 

     "The Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster - officially named Saint Stephen's Tower - is commonly known as the Big Ben. The tower is one of London's most famous landmarks. The clock inside the tower was the world's largest when it was installed in the middle of the 19th century. The name Big Ben actually refers to the clock's hour bell, the largest of the clock's five bells. The other four are used as quarter bells."

      "Burghley has filled people with awe and inspiration. So much more than a house, Burghley offers a unique glimpse of the way great houses have been furnished and inhabited from the time of Queen Elizabeth I to the present day."