Countdown!

Well only a few more days till the Big A is here. How exciting. I have a bunch of spoiling grandma genes saved up!! It will really be good to see her.
This weekend is also the Rorie reunion! And we are going, this year it is up by St. Louis. I hope since we are so close that we can go up in the big arch and maybe ride in a paddle boat on the ol' Mississippi.
Should be a fun time for all!!
Whooppee!!

Sniff! It's over

Well vacation is over, back to work tomorrow. I must admit this has been one of the most relaxing vacations we have had. We usually are roofing, cementing, building sheds or shops, or something. This vacation was just refreshing. I think we needed it.
On Friday we did go and see X-Men III, heads up if you see it make sure and stay till the end of the credits you will get a big suprise!! We were lucky the girl at the ticket booth told us to make sure and stay, Thank you!! I must admit it was hard to sit and wait, we had just drunk the extra large pop.
Yesterday we went to an after wedding bbq at R & B's, we had a great time and equally great food. Yummy. Even latija and pie (again) what a week. Congratulations C & T.

My accomplishments during vacation,
1. finished Whisker of Evil and most of Sour Puss, by Rita Mae Brown.
2. Washed curtains and windows downstairs ( need to the do the upstairs now, guess I need another vacation)
3. watched "Bride and Prejudice" and "Pride and Prejudice" with Colin Firth, Hubba! Hubba! (4 1/2 hours long) Need I say more.

4. Did a lot of channel surfing, not sure why if we have over 70 channels there is nothing to watch!
Enough said!
But it is in writing now.

Rest of Vacation

Second day same as the first. No, not really I did actually wash all of the curtains and the windows. Whew!! What fun!
Third day: We actually did something fun! I wanted to go to Yoder Kansas and eat PIE! The Carriage Crossing in Yoder makes the best pies. I wanted Bob to go and see what he thought. But when we got to Yoder it was too early to eat, so I said lets go and check out the Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson. Bob said yes, big surprise to me. So off we went to Hutchinson. When we got there we found out we could go to 1 Imax show, 1 Planetarium, 1 Dr. Goddard show and the Museum for one low price of only $13. each. The Imax show was the "Mystery of the Nile", it was really interesting. The screen is giant and overwhelming. The river scene was so realistic I wish I would have taken dramamine. All in all we had a great time, and learned quite a bit about the history of space travel. Once we were done then off to Yoder we went. Supper was fantastic and for dessert we had the pie, Bob had chocolate cream and I had coconut cream, Yum Yum.
I think we had a great third day of our vacation.

Vacation??

Bob decided to take off this week for a small vacation. Ok, it is one of those "we stay at home and work around house vacations." Not usually fun but usually profitable, hmmmm. Then if we don't accomplish anything everyday then the guilt sets in. First day: lay around house, then sit around and feel bad about it. We really need to overcome this. I guess we will see what today brings!

Class is over!

Well, my first semester is completed. I guess I can continue on, so I am taking a class this summer.

I checked a bunch of books out from the library. Rita Brown- 3 books, Memoirs of Geisha, a few videos. So I have been reading, but I am having a hard time getting into them. My class starts in June. So I am thinking I better really start reading or I am not going to be able to finish.
In the mean time I ordered my new text book and I am thinking I wish it would hurry and get here so I can start reading it. What is wrong with me??

We are taking a vacation next week. We do not have any really exciting plans. I would like to take to Bob to Yoder to the restaurant there and get pie. How is exciting is that!!

Our garden is doing great! Tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, we went out last night and weeded some. (they are still little) Now if we did that every night they would not get out of hand. What is the chance of that happening!! HA

Happy May Day!

Happy May Day Everyone!!
Stop and smell the flowers!! HA!

Rain! and Fiction!!

Hope all is well with you and yours.
Thought I would talk about wonderful rain. I love the rain and I love storms, unless I am driving in them. It is exciting to hear the rolling thunder and to hear and see the lighting is exhilerating. Rain is great for gardens. Ok I am being obtuse!!

So the system here at work is on the blink, so thought I would blog a bit and all I could come up with is rain. My life is pathetic.

But that is ok I like pathetic, it is peaceful. And I love peaceful.
I went to Emporia last weekend, this was my last weekend intensive class for the semester. I have one paper due by May 5th and then I am done. Now just waiting for the grades. Anxious times. I really did enjoy the class. I really liked the collaboration with the other students on a project and then we created our own presentation. I like this aspect of class better than writing papers. I am still waiting to hear about the last two papers I wrote. They could be the turning point on whether I go on or not. I really won't know for sure till this fall if I will continue in the program. I have to complete three theory classes before I know the verdict. Pins and needles.

One great thing is that on May 5th after my paper is turned in I can read for fun, till my next class. I have really missed fiction. Ahhh romance, mystery, comedy, I might even enjoy science fiction:)
I miss you all!!

Flakey floor

Bob has decided to epoxy the shop floor. This will help protect the floor and keep the cement dust down. So 12 gallons later we are almost done. So the process is that you have to put the epoxy in the tan paint, stir and wait 30 minutes then you have a little over an hour to roll it on the floor. Then you sprinkle these little flakes, my job. We only have about a 4x6 spot in the shop and then with what is left we will paint the shed. So then we will have two really cool looking floors. We actually started last week. So it will be good to get it done. One more project under our belt:)

Ok Better!

All righty then!
Empty nest syndrome is over.
Life goes on right? I still have the dog and cat. And the cat seems to like to bug me while I am typing on the computer, even now as I type she us rubbing her head on the computer. I think Zena is jealous. Oh well!
We planted another garden this year. We decided to only plant the
1. the plants that grow the best
2. the veggies we really like
So we planted
8 habanero peppers
16 cayenne peppers
2 chili salsa
4 jalapeno
18 tomatoes
3 pkgs. of cucumbers
I planted so many tomatoes because my granddaughter Marcia loves tomatoes and she is coming to visit this summer. So hopefully the garden will do well.

Something else in the ongoing saga of my trying to lose weight.
There is a new program where I work, it is called Butler Biggest Loser. So we started last week, first week I lost 1.8 lbs. I was surprised that I even lost anything. It was a bad eating week. Braums shakes, bbq beef sandwiches for lunches, and then 4 desserts for Easter.
But this week will be better. Right?
Later:)

Ackkkk! Empty nest!

Empty nest. Not exactly like I thought it would be. I have been waiting for this day for a long time. Now it is here and I am freaking out. Kind of a weird feeling. I want to call and talk to someone. Oh well, I could always bug my daughter-in-law, but she has been listening to me already. I just need to get a grip. Just give me a few days. Transitions are always hard. Right!! I need to sit back and enjoy. Right!!

Moving on!

Many changes going on. Our youngest son has moved out. Kind of wierd. but it is about time. I rearranged the house downstairs, now I need to go upstairs and clean and move stuff around. Maybe next weekend, oh well, if not now, in the near future.

This week will be very busy. It is Tri-Conference! It will be in Wichita this year. On Tuesday I am presenting in a Preconference in Hutchinson and then one Thursday both of the sessions will be about wireless, the ins and outs. The one on Thursday we will talk about our wireless mobile lab and how we have taken it to the public library and taught beginning computer classes. This week will be very busy.

I submitted by first APA editorial paper on Fri., hope I do well I have to write another one by the 14th of this month. Happy Easter to me!! I think I am taking a class this summer, haven't decided yet. Kind of waiting to see when wonderful granddaughter is coming.

Another new thing in my life is that here at Butler we are starting a new program next week. Butler's Biggest Loser. It starts on the 10th, so of course I am in the process of eating all of the bad food in the house. Isn't that always the way it is. Seems like I am always eating the bad food so I can start something new. Maybe if I didn't buy the bad food in the first place I might weigh about 50 lbs. less. hmmm gives me something to think about.
Later. I will let you know how well I do!

Hello out there!!

Just wanted to let you all know that I am still around. Been busy as everyone is. Classes, preparties, parties, building of buildings.
I have decided that I am not as smart as I thought I was. Classses are taxing.
I am gearing up for a Preconference at Tri-conference. We are presenting a Wondering about Wireless. Hope it goes well. I did finally finish teaching my spring classes for CE and one at the public library in town. I think I am ready for vacation, or how about spring break. But then I will be writing papers. APA style, haven't quite got a grasp on that yet. Anyone out there an expert? Let me know. Later, R

I stand corrected:) Ha Ha!

Oops! Old age is setting in. Debbie reminded me that Luke and Laura were on General Hospital. She is so right! Silly me.
“One life to live” was also a soap that I watched, guess I got them confused. Ahhh! the memories, they must be fading.

Fav show

Just thought I would let you all know that I love the Gilmore Girls, unless Lorelai and Luke do not get married. (Must be something about the Luke name. I remember in years past I got hooked on Luke and Laura. It was on One Life to Live. At that time in my life I had daycare in my home and everyday at nap time I drifted off into the land of soaps. I thought Luke was hot. In fact I told Bob I thought he would look cool with curly hair, of course he had nothing to do with that).
Oh well back of GG. I got hooked on watching them when I was in Mexico for a week. It was on about 3 times a day. That was it. Now I can watch it on Monday night, Tuesday afternoon and Tuesday night. I guess I am a romantic at heart. Some of my earlier shows that I enjoyed were: Whos the Boss and before that Moonlighting. Do you see a theme here. Cool woman gets rough guy. Kind of makes me think of my life. ................................................. Ok I was waiting for the laughter to stop.
I always relate to the libraian in the Mummy and the rough tough romantic lead. See same theme. I am not sure where I am going with this. Just what is popping into my head.

Oh yes I really wanted the Seahawks to win, since I have been to Seattle twice. Oh well there is always next year. Maybe the Broncos or KC Chiefs might make it to the Superbowl.

Other stuff!

I wanted to let you know that I did do something more than just sitting in front of a tv during the break. I did go and see the "Chronicles of Narnia" with the ladies at work. I really liked it, so I decided that I needed to read the 7 volumes. I started and only got to number 5, in fact I am in the middle of it. I am not sure if I will be able to finish. I am officially in the Master's program at the School of Library and Information Management at ESU. Last weekend was my first class, by Sunday afternoon I was zonked. I have decided that I need to become a "deep thinker" I am certainly lacking in that department.

Eureka! Number 7!

I remembered the 7th movie we watched. I saw a commercial and thought that was the other movie. It was the Dukes of Hazzard! I must admit it was a little weird seeing the new people in the show. I think my favorite was Burt Reynolds.

Years ago we spent many a night watching the old Dukes of Hazzard. My boys must have really enjoyed watching the show. (and learning evidently) Later on, years later, in Alex's high school yearbook someone had written that they had fun playing "Dukes of Hazzard." Oh yes, this cleared up the mystery of the pinto returning home one night non the worse for wear. Poor pinto, bob drove this car 90 miles a day. Even after the "Dukes of Hazzard" incident the pinto just kept going and going. Just wait Alex, fun times ahead!!

Got one!

One of the movies was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (I kept thinking of Randi, since she loves Johnny Depp and thinking why?) I know its just me.
Oh yes I also thought of the first movie and compared this one to the first Chocolate Factory. If I remember right the first time I saw the first Chocolate Factory was during the first year I was married. Wow way back then. I was baking the Thanksgiving turkey dinner for my family at my house. Ah the memories!!

Christmas Past!

Well another Christmas has come and long gone! I didn't feel too bad till I read everyone's blog. Oh well:)
We went to the Holt Christmas at Bob's moms and enjoyed a great meal. Played pitch, I won 2 out of 3 games, which doesn't usually happen. Arthur finally won one game and then we could quit. Funny guy!
At the Holt Christmas all of the truckdriver brothers brought everyone calendars, either small ones to stick in your car or some trucker calendars to hang on walls, Hmmm maybe I can send them to grandkids. Since their rooms are all clean now!! (See Randi"s blog) Funny grandma!!

We did watch quite a few movies, 7 in all. Let's see, Mr and Mrs Smith, (had a hard time, kept thinking of Jenifer Aniston) sniff!, oh yes, Sky High, Kirk Russell (Hubba Hubba, liked him since the early Disney movies), Fantastic Four (twice now once with Mistie and Connie at Pat's house), Stealth, (Bob picked out this one, it was better than I thought it would be), The Island(Kevin picked out this one, it was a good scifi), Great! I can only remember 5 of them. I will try to remember later. Guess they weren't that good.

Last week I did go and see the Chronicles of Narnia, it was a really well done film. Now I have decided to read the series. Finished the first one and now I am starting the second in the series. Thought I had better get all of the fun reading done for now. Starting in January there will be no fun reading at my house. Acckkkkl!

Where are the memories?

I was looking at my bloglines and checking out the Get Fuzzy and then looked down and saw my blog, Holt Family Memories, and I thought where are the memories? It has just been a very busy last couple of months. Thanksgiving just passed and now it is almost time for Christmas. Can't seem to get in the mood, Wonder why? May be because some people are far far away. In fact I haven't even sent the Christmas box yet!! But I will this weekend after payday.

It is very cold here in Kansas, but we do have some beautiful sparkling snow. I love the snow, it is the crunchy kind. I like it because when you walk you can dig your feet in and not fall. (unlike the ice kind)

Last week was fun. I was going shopping with my friend Brenda. It started out with a dead battery, then a two hour waiting period on the turnpike because of a wreck. And then all I wanted to do was get my tires balanced and rotated. Oh well $664.00 and 4 hours later I left with 4 new tires. Not sure how that happened. I am sure that when I went in the store the tire guys said, cheeching! Bonus! tonight boys. Oh well. We did have fun shopping anyway. Later in the week in the morning my windshield wiper flew off so I had to scrape the windows. Not fun.
Oh yes and remember when I took the GRE will it needs to do to Emporia so I can enroll in the Library Science program, well they hadn't gotten it yet so I told them I could fax the results that I had gotten to them. Well guess what? I can't find my results. I am sure I put them in a safe place, just not sure where. Good thing is that I have really cleaned my house and office looking for them. But they did let me enroll as pending enrollment. So next spring the fun will begin! And why am I doing this?

Well hope everyone has a wonderful day! R

Shopping or a Museum!!

Last week I went to Aurora, Co to a "Disaster for Libraries workshop." (now when I said that in front of a few people they were amused, you know who you are) But I did have a lot of fun. I was able to go up early and spend time with by brother, Rusty before he had to go to work. And then in the evening I went with my sister-in-law Cathy, my nephew Brian and Juli from work to the Cherry Creek mall. We ate at the California Pizza Kitchen and then went shopping. Ok now I have to tell you. Color me backwoods Kansas folk! Or would that be plaine folks from here in Kansas! Anyway we went to Nieman Marcus and I thought wow look at those prices. I told Cathy I feel like I am in a museum. Shirts, $330.00, skirts $400.00 and shoes were, Get This! $650.00. Then we just strolled over to Sacs Fifth Ave. I walked right up to a cute little leather vest with a little bit of fur for only $1300.00. More museums!! Ha!! After this I was need of some serious chocolate. Cathy took us to Stephanies and we bought a few boxes, the one I bought was called the "Denver Mint" Get it? (dark chocolate filled with delicious mint.) Oh by the way Brian did ditch us for the big compfy chair and big screen TV, I think there was a basketball game going on.
Next day went to the Disaster workshop, it was interesting and they did some hands-on activities. Juli and I stopped by Office Max and Sam's and then the World Market. I mentioned to Juli that Cathy had a card for Cosco's, boy she got excited so I called Cathy and she took us there. Then in the evening we went out once again. This time we went to downtown Denver. It has changed a bunch from when I had lived there. We ended up eating at the Hard Rock Cafe. Good food, grippy salesperson. I think we made her made because we messed up the t-shirts, oh well. We wanted to make sure we got the right size. We ended the evening at Barnes and Noble and bought a few books. I got one for mom and dad, the new Trent Lott book, Herding Cats. They couldn't find it in Mississippi, since they don't have any stores yet. I think the highlight of the evening for Juli was when Cathy took us to Cosco to do some shopping. (we don't have one here in Kansas yet) Well hope all is with you today, take care!!