Linda's Sunflower

Abby, trying to get warm? Corby and our neighbor Paul Our new lawnmower Our recently shaved Cinnamon Kaitlin's picture of the baby opossum Corby working on Brandon's car Muffin in her box  

Very scary night tonight. I was at work late due to some major problems, and Kaitlin called me frantically about 6:20. Corby has passed out at the kitchen table. She called 911. As she was on the phone with them, he came to. I told her I was on my way, and after telling co-workers to cover our major problems, I called her back. He had passed out again. She heard sirens at that point so I knew EMS was almost there. I flew home - but still it took me about 20 minutes. By the time I got home, EMS was gone. VERDICT - heat exhaustion. He doesn't have A/C at his work, then he came home and mowed and weed-eated part of the yard - before our mower died (and that's a whole other story). EMS said to get him hydrated, make him lie down with his feet elevated and keep an eye on him for 24-48 hours. So, that's what we're doing. We were going to have family over on Sunday to celebrate my sister and niece's birthdays, but we have postponed that celebration for now. Hubby is on VER...

Yesterday was extremely busy for us. Corby and I both had to take a day of vacation - and spent it in Manhattan replacing the gas tank in Brandon's car. The morning started out strangely. When Corby went out in the garage to load the new gas tank into his car, he found a baby opossum in the trash can. The picture isn't very good because I didn't want to get any closer to it, and I took it with my cell phone. More on that story in a minute... Kaitlin didn't plan to go to Manhattan with us, but with all the early morning excitement with the opossum, she said "I'm up early, I might as well go." We arrived around 9:45am. Kaleb greeted us, but Brandon was at work. He started his new tech intern job yesterday! He interviewed last Friday and got the job! We're so happy for him and proud of him. He's getting in on the ground floor of a new company, one that has great promise. They do computer engineering and programming for financial institutions. At th...

Ordered a boatload of puzzle books for dirt cheap! It will take me a few years to work all 32 books (for less than $30!)... Abby and Muffin enjoying Kaitlin's shelving... Kaitlin and her dad with the load of stuff from Manhattan.  

Five things I'm loving right now (in no particular order): 1) Kaitlin. I think the year away at K-State was good for her. She's always been very mature for her age, but doing things for yourself can only make you a stronger and better person. We're so enjoying having her home. I will have a job announcement soon for her, but until it's official I can't say anything. She's such a joy to have around! 2) My camera. I'm still doing Project Life, and some days I forget to take pictures, so I have to catch up. But it's made me think of the little things in life, things that are sometimes not noticed. Things like cereal you receive with your paper the new Mel Gibson movie out on DVD (and you all know I'm a Mel fan!) 3) Work. Yes, 95% of the time I love my job! The fact that I still have one with all the hard times in the newspaper industry is a GOOD thing. Being promoted recently to prepress manager and taking over the management of several differ...

* Loved having Monday and Tuesday off to spend with the kids * Kaleb went home on Tuesday afternoon * Kaitlin, Brandon and I had lunch at The Beacon yesterday afternoon * Brandon went back to Manhattan yesterday afternoon * Kaitlin did a load of laundry AND fixed dinner last night * BUSY day at work today * Kaitlin is bored already * Tomorrow is FRIDAY * Kaitlin and Corby are headed to Manhattan on Saturday to get the rest of her stuff * They might spend the night, which means peace and quiet for me * Kaitlin's job situation looks promising, will tell all when it's a sure thing * Brandon has a computer tech job interview tomorrow afternoon * Cinnamon is finally staying outside, after being inside most of the last week due to rain * The cats love having Kaitlin home * Mom and dad love having Kaitlin home * Kaitlin enrolled and got her class schedule at WSU on Tuesday  

We had a fun KC trip this past weekend, except for the RAIN! It rained all the way to KC on Saturday, and was still raining when we got there. We did some shopping at Oak Park Mall. Along with Brandon, Kaleb & Kaitlin, their roommate Dom and Kaitlin's best friend Lydia went with us. We ate lunch with Lydia's aunt and uncle and then headed downtown. The rain finally stopped, so we dropped the boys off at Rockfest around 3:00, and then checked in to the Westin. The rain started up again, and Kaleb finally gave up on the concert around 7pm. He was so muddy, he had to hose himself down with a hose that the Westin hooked up for concert goers. And Kaleb being Kaleb, he forgot to bring a change of clothes. This is what happens when mom doesn't take care of everything I guess. Anyway, we had to make a mad dash to Walmart and buy him a t-shirt, shorts, flip flops and underwear. We grabbed a quick bite at Taco Bell before heading back to the hotel. Brandon and Dom got back aro...

My tooth has been bothering me the last few days, but after being unable to sleep last night I decided I better call the dentist. Thankfully they were able to squeeze me in today. It's one of my bottom teeth, at the very back of my mouth. Dr. Orth said it was infected, and gave me two options: get a root canal and a crown, or get it pulled. Not today, of course. But I do have to make up my mind. A root canal and crown will cost around $2000, and insurance won't pay much of it. An extraction will cost between $100-$175. I'm leaning towards the extraction, but have a week or so to decide. He prescribed me an antibiotic and Lortab for the pain. I also scheduled an appointment for a cleaning, as it's been far too long since I've had it done. Time to invest some money in my teeth I guess... Cinnamon was SO funny last night. She was in the house and the front door was open. All of a sudden she ran downstairs and started freaking out at the door. There was a bunny in the...

Gave the dog a bath. Got stopped by a train on the way to work. Went to lunch with my good friend Susan. Drove by St. Paul's United Methodist Church, which is where Corby and I got married 22+ years ago. Found my Flip video camcorder. I bought this thing over 2 years ago, and it was not compatible with my old computer. It just dawned on my this morning that I bet it would work on my new one, and I was right! Downloaded some video of Muffin drinking out of Corby's glass (gross!), the twins, Corby & I on a trip to Manhattan to see Brandon, and one of Kaitlin's choral performances at Heights! LOVE IT! Now I can use it all the time! Went to a 50th Anniversary Party for my good friend Anne and her husband Elmer. GREAT people! Got a beautiful card in the mail from the kids with a VERY sweet note from Kaitlin - it made me cry! How about your week?  

Abby liked the ribbon Corby used to tie up the curtains. Look at all those damn claw marks on Kaitlin's wall...

I read 8 books in April: 1) Deeper than the Dead - Tami Hoag 2) Take Three - Karen Kingsbury 3) Never Look Away - Linwood Barclay 4) This Time Together-Laughter & Reflection - Carol Burnett 5) Fear the Worst - Linwood Barclay 6) The Last Surgeon - Michael Palmer 7) Midnight Sons-Vol. 3 - Debbie Macomber 8) Waking up in Charleston - Sherryl Woods Linwood Barclay's newest - Never Look Away, and The Last Surgeon were probably my two favorite books this month. I am so glad my niece, Lenore, turned me on to Barclay. His books are suspenseful and inventive. Michael Palmer doesn't churn out a novel every 6 months, so I'm always excited to read his books. Thanks to Lenore for loaning me a SIGNED copy of The Last Surgeon! I also really enjoyed Carol Burnett's book. It was interesting to read how she started her career, and how she ended up with her own show. I remember many an evening laughing my head off at the antics of Carol, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway and Vicki...

Last Sunday our washer broke down. Our friend and neighbor Paul came over to help us figure out the problem. The pump and the motor were still working, so they decided it was the timer. Corby called around on Monday pricing them, and then we checked online. The cheapest timer we could find was $185. We decided not to put that much money into a 12-year-old washer, so... out with the old and in with the new I haven't even used it yet. We bought it at Lowe's on Tuesday night and it was delivered for free on Thursday night. They even hauled off the old one. Thank goodness! Tomorrow will be spent catching up on laundry. Muffin enjoyed watching leaves blow around this week. We certainly had enough days of ferocious wind! I am SO sick of it. Kansas has always been windy, but days on end of 30-50mph winds is really tiresome. Today I took mom out for a drive and lunch. We drove past North High and then went downtown. I showed her the corner where Buck's used to be (Broadway ...